After a month of blustery, cold and gray; cherry trees are popping all over Korea, like kernels from the popcorn popper at the movies. I remember being told, on the ride from the airport, “Those cherry trees that line all the streets will be beautiful soon.” I watched them from a distance and up close, touching the bark and gently rolling the buds between my fingers but they were just cold, naked, black barked trees. They were just like me, waiting for sunshine and a warmer day.
This morning I had several places to go; things to do. My walking took me down canyons, between high rise condos where traffic below is in the shadows nearly all the day. Later in the afternoon, I was coming home by another way, exploring, if you will. Turning the corner, out of the shadows, my new way home was lined with familiar, black trees but they were in full bloom. Obviously, some streets get more sunlight than others and they bloom first. For several days, I’d seen Forsythia trying to bloom from plantings along walkways and in parks. Like the cherry trees, they bloom first, before the leaves open up. So I was anticipating, any day; cherry blossom time.
My eyes didn’t tear up and I didn't need to catch my breath, nothing emotional but I was surprised. Late in the afternoon of a day that I had already dismissed as “Unremarkable”, I stumble onto cherry blossoms, everywhere, both sides of the street, so dense on every tree you couldn’t see the branches.. It was something to celebrate so I stopped at a bakery, bought one of those flat, thin, cinnamon pastries that look like the a shoe sole. Stepping out the door, I turn up the hill, get maybe three or four steps and a young woman touches me on the arm. I stop, turn and she asks me if I have ten minutes. Young women here, if they’re not decked out in make up and designer fashion, it’s hard to tell their age. She could have been 14 or 21 and I had no idea. So I gave her my blank stare; universal to mean, “Please say that again.” After some clumsy exchanges on a crowded, noisy sidewalk, I got the message. She was a student and her homework assignment was to record a selfie, ten minute interview, with a stranger, in English.
She was a sweetheart, whatever her age. I said she could have the rest of my day if she liked, which went right over her head. It was my turn to get “The Stare.”. I nodded rather than repeat myself and there we stood, people crowding around us on both sides. We moved over by a light pole, out of the main stream. She held up her I-phone and touched the “record” button and asked that I introduce myself and say where I’m from. That done, we started down a list of questions, scribbled in Korean on a crumpled piece of paper. It went from, “How long. . .” to, “Where. . .” ta, “Favorite places” to, all the things you would expect. Asked about Korean food, kimchi in particular, I said the food was good and that I was learning to use chop sticks, which raised her eyebrows and earned a smile of approval. Then she asked me if there was anything I’d like to say in closing. I pointed to my chest, to my maize & blue, University of Michigan t-shirt and said, “When you come to the United States, come to Michigan and I’ll interview you.” I got the same round mouthed, wide eyed look as before. She didn’t know about coming to America but I told her that everybody else is coming, why not her. She approved, digging down into her shoulder bag and pulled out a little, 8oz. bottle of Aloe, juice drink. It was a token gift for helping her with her assignment. She headed down hill while I resumed my walk home.
Within a block, there was a small park with tables and benches. I sat down, opened my Aloe drink and unwrapped my cinnamon pastry. Sitting in the sunshine with a sweet crunchy-munchy and aloe juice, I took a break. The Aloe was almost too sweet but there were little bits of tasty pulp that made it interesting. I thought, ‘If I hadn’t come here, I could have been somewhere in the States, watching the news or listening to someone vent their displeasure over any number of hot topics. But I’m in Korea, with brand new cherry blossoms and a new taste for Aloe.’
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