Humans of Changwon Science High School - Mr. Jo Jae Jung

"My saddest moment was when My father passed away. I feel very sad every time that I am reminded that I cannot see him anymore. Now it's been 10 years and It's kind of fading away from me. The present fills out the emptiness of the past grief, you know."

Mr. Jo Jae Jung teaches Korean in CSHS. It's my first year learning from him, but I learned a lot from him. I interviewed him because he is always full of things to talk about.

First, I asked him if he could express his life as a phrase, and he talked about an old book called “I have stood too long and walked too long”. He said he has stood too long and walked too long sacrificing for his family and students more than himself. I learned that the life sacrificing for one’s work and family is beautiful, so I should be less selfish and work hard on everything I do.

Next, I asked him about the happiest moment of his life. He said that the best thing was when his parents were alive, when his kids laughed happily, and when nothing goes wrong. He said that the happiest moment was when he realized this. I felt very sorry for him, and I thought about my parents, too. I was also impressed by the fact that he does not live greedily.

Next, I asked him about the saddest moment of his life. He said that it was when his father passed away. It has been 10 years, and he feels sad every time he is reminded of the fact that he cannot see him anymore. However, he could feel that this feeling has become diluted. He said that the present fills the emptiness of past grief. I was very touched when he said, “the present fills out the emptiness of past grief”. It is important to deal with one’s own grief, and I learned a lot from him.

My next question was what he would do if he could go back to his youth. He said when he was in elementary school, he was bullied. Then, the kids in his town were divided into two: the kids who played with him, and the others. They actually had a fight one Saturday afternoon beside a graveyard on the top of a mountain. He and the opposing group’s leader fought, but they were just glaring at each other. The fight ended like that. He said that he would want to settle that fight if he could go back.

Then, I asked him about his favourite thing at CSHS. He said that the best thing is the fact that students actually listen to what he is saying. He also likes that he can choose what to teach. I felt that I should participate in his classes, and all the other classes, because it is what teachers really feel happy about.

My final question was about his hobby. He said that he likes sports. He likes to do Hapkido, but he also likes badminton, volleyball and soccer. He said he does not have time to do these nowadays because he has too much work to do. He said that he likes to exercise at least one hour a day.

From this interview, I could feel that he lives very “well“. I was kind of ashamed about my behaviour. I feel that there is a lot of things to learn from an elder.