고향교회로부터 6월 첫주일에 말씀을 전해달라는 부탁을 받았습니다. 고향 성도들을 만나는 일이니 경기도 고양에서 고향인 하동까지, 길은 상당하지만 주저하지 않고 달려갔습니다. 이번에는 내려간 김에 고향산천을 걸어보기로 마음 먹었습니다. 금요일에 내려가 6월 4일 토요일 하루를 할애해서 고향산천을 걸어보기로 한 것입니다. 남해군 설천면 금음리 288번지(옥동 마을)는 제가 태어난 곳입니다. 그리고 국민학교를 입학해서 4학년 초까지 다닌 동네입니다.
<설천 쪽 남해바다>
학교를 다니던 여느날처럼 7시 55분에 동네를 나서서 설천초등학교를 향했습니다. 8시 25분 학교에 도착해서 보니 학교가 개교한지 100주년이 되는 날이었습니다. 가는 날이 장날 정도가 아니라 어쩌다 간 날이 100주년 기념일이니 비록 졸업은 하지 않았지만 입학을 해서 다닌 것은 분명하니 남다른 감회가 있었습니다. 하지만 잠깐 학교를 둘러보고 곧 바로 집으로 돌아오는 모드를 취했습니다. 학교 갈 때는 동네 아이들과 함께 동네 앞길로 가고, 학교가 끝나면, 혼자서 동네 뒷길로 돌아오곤 했던 그 옛날처럼 길을 택해서 걸었습니다. 10살 때 전학을 간 후에는 64년만의 귀가(?) 길이지만 그리 어렵지 않게 찾아서 돌아갈 수 있었습니다.
<남해, 노량대교 방향>
그날은 수업이 없이 돌아오다 보니 아침 시간이 상당히 많이 남아서 오후에 가려고 했던 4, 5, 6학년 때 살던 하동군 금남면 덕천리 덕포마을로 바로 내달았습니다. 옛날 살던 집 부근에서 출발해서 산으로 올라갔지만, 그 시절 소먹이는 아이들이 사라진 후에는 산길도 사라지고, 길이 있는 것 같아서 몇 차례 낚였던 길은 모두 묘지로 인도되는 길이었습니다. 하긴 거기가 우리 인생의 종착지이긴 하지만 … 그 시절 소를 몰고 뒷산에 가서 소는 소대로 풀을 뜯고. 우린 친구들과 해가 기울도록 놀았습니다. 그 때 놀았던 백만너들이라고 부르던 큰바위들이 수없이 모여있는 곳을 찾으려고 몇 차례 시도했지만 실패하고 산에서 따먹은 산딸기로는 허기를 채울 수 없어서 점심을 먹은 후에 재도전하기로 하고 일단 하산을 했습니다.
<옥동 앞바다>
하동 솔잎 한우프라자에서 갈비탕 한 그릇을 먹고 허기는 면했지만, 커피를 한 잔 하려고 <양탕국커피마을>로 향했습니다. 한국식 커피 문화의 독립을 선언한 후, 커피로 문화선교를 시도하는 놀라운 꿈을 꾸는 대표님을 만났습니다. 거기서 커피를 마시고, 이번에는 덕천리에서가 아니라 대송리에서 입산을 시도했습니다. 다행히 <금오산 등산로 안내도>가 있는 곳에 주차를 하고, 안내도의 도움으로 재입산을 했지만 세상이 변했다는 것을 그제사 깨달았습니다. 60년 전 민둥산은 사라지고 울창한 산림으로 변하여 마치 천지개벽한 것 같았습니다. 제주도 삼다수숲길이나 교래리 자연휴양림 못지 않는 금오산의 울창함 때문에 다음 기회에 도전하기로 했습니다. 이번 고향산천 밟아보기는 그 정도로 만족할 수밖에 없었지만 오랜 꿈을 이루는 하루였습니다.
I received a request from my hometown church to preach the Word on the first Sunday of June. Since it was an opportunity to meet the beloved saints of my hometown, I set out without hesitation, driving the considerable distance from Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, down to Hadong. Having made the journey, I decided to take the time to walk through the hills and streams of my childhood. I headed down on Friday and dedicated the entire day of Saturday, June 4th, to wandering across the land of my roots. 288 Geumeum-ri, Seolcheon-myeon, Namhae-gun (Okdong Village) is where I was born. It is also the very village where I entered primary school and attended until early in my fourth grade.
Just as I used to do on any ordinary school day, I left the village at 7:55 AM and headed toward Seolcheon Elementary School. Arriving at the school at 8:25 AM, I discovered that this very day marked the 100th anniversary of its founding. Far beyond mere coincidence, arriving purely by chance on the centennial anniversary stirred deep emotions within me; though I did not graduate from here, I certainly entered and spent precious formative years walking these halls. Yet, after taking a brief look around the school grounds, I shifted into a mode of returning straight home. I chose the exact paths of yesteryear—walking along the front road with neighborhood friends on the way to school, and wandering back alone along the back alleys after classes ended. Though it was my first walk "home" in 64 years since transferring away at the age of ten, I was able to find my way back without much difficulty.
<Namhae, facing Noryang Bridge>
Returning without any classes to attend left me with plenty of morning hours. So, I hurried off directly to Deokpo Village in Deokcheon-ri, Geumnam-myeon, Hadong-gun, where I lived during my fourth, fifth, and sixth grades—a place I had originally planned to visit in the afternoon. Starting from near the house where I used to live, I began climbing up the mountain. However, since the days of children herding cattle had long faded, the old mountain trails had vanished as well. The paths that seemed promising and lured me in several times all led directly to ancestral graves. Well, perhaps that is the ultimate destination of our human lives after all... In those distant days, we would lead our cattle to the mountain behind the village; the cattle would graze on their own, and we children would play with our friends until the sun dipped low. I made several attempts to locate "Baekman-neodeul"—a place where countless giant boulders gathered where we used to play—but failed. With only wild mountain berries to stave off my appetite, I could not satisfy my hunger, so I decided to descend for now and try again after lunch.
After enjoying a bowl of galbitang (beef short rib soup) at Hadong Pine Needle Hanwoo Plaza to satisfy my hunger, I headed to for a cup of coffee. There, I met the founder, a visionary who, after declaring the cultural independence of Korean-style coffee, harbors the remarkable dream of cultural mission through coffee. After savoring my coffee there, I attempted to climb the mountain once again, this time starting from Daesong-ri rather than Deokcheon-ri. Thankfully, I was able to park where the "Geumosan Hiking Trail Map" stood, and with its guidance, I began my ascent again. Only then did I truly realize how much the world had changed. The barren hillsides of 60 years ago were completely gone, transformed into a lush, dense forest as if heaven and earth had been recreated anew. Because the verdant thickness of Mount Geumo rivaled even the Samdasoo Forest Trail or the Gyorae-ri Natural Recreation Forest in Jeju Island, I decided to leave the deeper exploration for another day. Though I had to settle for this brief retracing of my hometown's hills and streams, it was truly a day that fulfilled a long-cherished dream.
Ek het ’n versoek van my tuisgemeente ontvang om op die eerste Sondag van Junie die Woord te bedien. Omdat dit ’n kosbare geleentheid was om die gelowiges van my geboorteplek te ontmoet, het ek sonder om te huiwer die aansienlike afstand vanaf Goyang in die Gyeonggi-provinsie na Hadong aangepak. Aangesien ek reeds die reis onderneem het, het ek besluit om deur die berge en strome van my kinderjare te stap. Ek het Vrydag afgery en die hele Saterdag, 4 Junie, opsygesit om my geboortegrond te voet te verken. Geumeum-ri 288, Seolcheon-myeon, Namhae-gun (Okdong-dorpie) is waar ek gebore is. Dit is ook die dorpie waar ek my laerskoolloopbaan begin het en tot vroeg in my vierde graad skoolgegaan het.
Net soos op enige gewone skooldag van ouds, het ek om 7:55 vm. uit die dorpie vertrek en na Seolcheon Laerskool gestap. Toe ek om 8:25 vm. by die skool aankom, het ek ontdek dat dit presies die skool se 100ste bestaansjaar was. Dit was veel meer as net ’n toevallige besoek; om sommer per toeval op hul eeufeesdag daar aan te kom, het my diep geraak. Al het ek nie daar gematrikuleer nie, het ek tog daar begin en skoolgegaan, en dit het besondere herinneringe opgeroep. Nietemin het ek net kortliks op die skoolterrein rondgekyk en dadelik weer die pad terug huis toe gekies. Ek het dieselfde roetes van weleer gevolg: soggens saam met die buurt se kinders met die voorste dorpspad skool toe, en smiddae ná skool alleen met die agterpaadjies terug. Al was dit my eerste stap "huis toe" in 64 jaar sedert ek op tienjarige ouderdom na ’n ander skool oorgeplaas is, kon ek die weg sonder veel moeite terugvind.
<Namhae, in die rigting van die Noryang-brug>
Aangesien daar geen klasse was nie en ek vroeg teruggekeer het, het ek nog baie tyd in die oggend oorgehad. Ek het dadelik deurgery na Deokpo-dorpie in Deokcheon-ri, Geumnam-myeon, Hadong-gun—waar ek tydens my vierde, vyfde en sesde graad gewoon het en wat ek eintlik eers die middag wou besoek. Ek het naby ons ou huis begin en teen die berg opgestap, maar aangesien die kinders wat destyds beeste opgepas het lankal verdwyn het, het die bergpaadjies ook vervaag. Die paadjies wat belowend gelyk het en my telkens mislei het, het sonder uitsondering na begraafplase gelei. Nou ja, dit is immers die uiteindelike bestemming van ons aardse lewe... In daardie dae het ons die beeste na die agterste berg gejaag; die beeste het rustig gewei, en ons het tot laatmiddag saam met ons maats gespeel. Ek het verskeie kere probeer soek na "Baekman-neodeul"—’n plek met tallose massiewe rotse waar ons destyds gespeel het—maar kon dit nie vind nie. Omdat die paar wilde bergframbose wat ek gepluk het glad nie my honger kon stil nie, het ek besluit om eers af te daal en ná middagete weer te probeer.
Nadat ek my honger met ’n bakkie galbitang (beesribsop) by die Hadong Pine Needle Hanwoo Plaza gestil het, is ek na vir ’n koppie koffie. Daar het ek die stigter ontmoet—’n man met ’n merkwaardige droom wat, ná ’n verklaring van kulturele onafhanklikheid vir Koreaanse koffiekultuur, kultuursending deur middel van koffie nastreef. Nadat ek koffie daar geniet het, het ek weer probeer om die berg aan te durf, hierdie keer vanaf Daesong-ri in plaas van Deokcheon-ri. Genadiglik kon ek parkeer waar die wandelkaart van die Geumo-berg gestaan het, en met behulp daarvan het ek opnuut begin klim. Eers toe het ek besef hoeveel die wêreld verander het. Die kaal berghange van 60 jaar gelede het plek gemaak vir ’n digte, welige woud—asof die hele aarde nuut geskep is. Omdat die weligheid van die Geumo-berg geensins terugstaan vir Jeju-eiland se Samdasoo-bospad of die Gyorae-ri Natuurontspanningswoud nie, het ek besluit om ’n dieper verkenning vir ’n volgende geleentheid te bêre. Hoewel ek hierdie keer met dié kort wandeling deur my geboortestreek tevrede moes wees, was dit ’n dag waarop ’n lank gekoesterde droom waar geword het.