[One Thousand Characters a Day] Lee Jeong-rim, I Will Start in the Winter Mountains<1>

Editor's NoteAsia Economy provides daily 1000-character transcription content for the ‘One Thousand Characters a Day’ newsletter readers. The transcription content is carefully selected according to daily and monthly themes from Eastern and Western classics, Korean literature, notable columns, and famous speeches. Today's content is the first installment of Lee Jeong-rim's (1986). Character count: 1000.

I climb the winter mountain. Spring has its own charm, summer its own, and autumn its own as well; each season gives the mountain a distinct personality. However, more than any other season, the winter mountain draws me with its unique allure.

Standing on the winter mountain, I always feel my body gradually emptying. Like a bare tree (namok) standing with only branches after shedding its leaves, I have the illusion that the flesh and blood of my body are flowing out beyond my skin.

The winter tree, proudly revealing itself as it is, stands firm even in the cold. This is because of the sap that continuously flows through its body.

On the winter mountain, I become a bare tree. And I meet my spirit, which is like the tree’s sap. The reason I could not face it earlier was because of the dazzling hypocrisy and pretense that covered my spirit like the lush leaves of a tree. It is like how one cannot clearly discern a person's true self when they wear excessively flashy clothes, or how the essence of a person is obscured when they hide themselves too much under the name of refinement.

The winter mountain strips away all this pretense. It allows the spirit to meet in purity, as if naked. In the cold air that awakens the spirit, I can vividly feel it. The winter mountain is like a religion that brings me and my spirit together and purifies it. To me, the mountain is a vast church.

When I look up at the sky on the winter mountain, tears naturally well up in my eyes. It is not sadness at all; the tears simply gather. The cold air cleanses the eyes. Not only the eyes but also the depths of the lungs are cleansed. It is a clear, piercing clarity that stings the chest.

As the murky veil that covered my heart is lifted, my heart becomes as clear as my eyes. One must have clear eyes to possess a clear heart, and one must have a clear heart to see things with clear eyes. The eyes and the heart are one. The winter mountain is like pure water that clears the eyes. To me, the mountain is a vast spring.