[One Thousand Characters a Day] Yujin Oh's 'Eomeoni'

Editor's NoteYoo Jin-oh, who debuted in 1945, joined the Communist Party the following year and, along with Kim Kwang-hyun, Kim Sang-hoon, Park San-woon, and Lee Byung-chul, led the political and literary activities of the as a 'new left-wing poet of the liberation period.' His poems recited at mass rallies, such as , are avant-garde, provocative, combative, and strongly reveal his political convictions. However, he did not write only ideologically inclined poetry; he also created works that embody tender poetic sensibility through traditional lyricism. The poem introduced today deeply expresses the poet's longing, sorrow, and anxious feelings toward his mother. Word count: 313.

Rough hands are gentle

The left cheek is wrapped in green wrinkles

The black eyeballs gaze far away

Mother, your son is here

Wanting to dress you in clean new clothes

The son still feels shabby

Mother, do your eyes follow me?

Just over twenty-two years ago

Beside the soiled sewing bowl, the son was not there

Since then, your eyes have developed the habit of just watching

Though your hair has turned white

Compared to when you were eighteen

You remain clumsy at kitchen work

But the habit of watching has become familiar

Even in your dreams, you just watch like that

Mother?

The anxious expression in your eyes

When will it ever fade away?

- Yoo Jin-oh,