Korean friends, had welcomed me into their group and I felt completely
at home in their company.
Going to university was not something I thought about much. School
had been such a fun-loving environment that part of me didn’t want to
leave. I spent hours on my laptop, surfing the internet and looking at
various schools and subjects. Muncho was there to comfort me, and
he told me that eventually, I was going to discover what I was
supposed to be, possibly in Chapter 23. He said I was probably
already on an inevitable path towards it. I smiled, and ate some kimbab.
I first thought about studying German, but that subject was still too
emotional and painful for me.
“What about mathematics?” Rex suggested.
I didn’t even take the trouble to answer such a preposterous
suggestion. Although mathematics is supposed to be a universal
language, it was a language that just went over my head, into one ear
and out of the other, and round the corner to the shop. Muncho and I
had many lengthy discussions about what I should do and Rex had
many unhelpful contributions too. One morning, I woke up and an idea
sprung into my head like a springy little deer born among the daffodils
just after the final frost of spring. There was something I loved doing,
and that was speaking Koream and learning about Korea. I immediately
turned on my laptop and looked for a university where I could study the
Korean language. That was how I got to know about the School of
Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in London. I remember whooping
at the top of my baritone voice, (I was by now one of the lesser
known baritones in Asia). I first confided in Jordan. I wanted his
brotherly advice.
“Jordan, I think I may have found what I was looking for.”
“What’s that?” he asked in a supportive fraternal voice.
“I want to study Korean language and culture!”
His mouth dropped open and his jaw hit the floor, then a second
later it shot back up again.
“Having thought about it a lot,” he said, “that makes total sense.
Go for it.” I felt so encouraged. However, when I told him I’d be