November 2021
This month's voice
David Shaffer, "Two Score and Ten: Flashbacks on Korea"
Introduction
Lindsay Herron
Editor, KOTESOL Voices
If you've spent any time at KOTESOL events, you're probably familiar with one of the organization's first (and most active) members, Dr. David E. Shaffer. Dave is often the first person I turn to when I have a question about KOTESOL or its history—but his knowledge of Korea is just as extensive, considering that when he arrived in the nation, the end of the Korean War was as fresh in people's experiences as the theatrical release of The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) is in ours. If you ask him nicely, perhaps he'll recount his remembrances of Korea as a Peace Corps volunteer so many years ago; but in the meantime, I'm delighted he was willing to share with KOTESOL Voices the reflective rewind below. Enjoy the years unfolding before you through this poetic eyewitness account!
Two Score and Ten: Flashbacks on Korea
David Shaffer
November it was
1971
A jet plane going East but flying west
To the Land of Morning Calm
To the Hermit Kingdom, the Korean War battlefield, the DMZ
To a land divided, a land of tears and despair, of military coup
Arrival at Kimpo International
Brings a wide-eyed idealist with much to view:
Park Chung-hee re-elected narrowly
Martial law declared forcibly
As power’s consolidated rapidly
Yushin Constitution enacted forcefully
Kim Dae-jung kidnapped in Tokyo
Imprisoned in Seoul
First Lady assassinated
President Park’s the goal
Panmunjom axe murderers kill U.S. soldiers gruesomely
Iri Station dynamite train explodes powerfully
KCIA bullet kills President Park stunningly
Shockingly, jarringly, sensationally
General Chun leads 12/12 coup stealthily
Martial law extended needlessly
Gwangju protests ve-he-ment-ly
Ten days of blood, of death, of darkness
KAL passenger plane downed by Soviets
Chun targeted by Northern assassins
Seoul ’86 Asian Games boycotted by socialists
KAL airliner bombed by Northern agents
General Roh morphs into President Roh
’88 Olympics seal “highly developing nation” status
Nationwide labor strikes erupt violently
North Korean war tunnels found repeatedly
North and South reach accord
The two Koreas the UN join
Agreements reached, treaties signed
’Fore a 400-strong spy ring find
ELT interest on the rise
Teachers quite hungry training-wise
AETK and KATE, the pair cement
Korea TESOL for professional development
Kim Young-sam as president elected
First civilian in 32 years selected
Expo ’93 shines hope so bright
From Daejeon’s “Tower of Great Light”
But short-lived this light shall be
As Seongsu Bridge collapses
As Daegu gas line explodes
As Sampoong building crumbles
Guilty as charged! Both Chun and Roh
But one year later, scott-free they go
More widespread labor strikes, largest ever
As “IMF” crisis saps Korea’s treasure
Activist, death-row prisoner, and president finally
Kim Dae-jung frees political prisoners, grants amnesty
Travels North with Sunshine Policy
Wins Nobel Peace Prize as his legacy
World Cup hosts are Korea and Japan
As UN boss, Ban Ki-moon’s the man
Korea in OECD, “advanced nation” implied
The new millennium brings national pride
Lee Myung-bak takes the throne
Pushing Seoul–Busan canal zone
Namdae-mun burns, money crisis returns
Roh Mu-hyun jumps off the cliff
North sinks Cheonan warship
Before Kim Jong-il departed
The Yeosu Expo opens
Before first female president elected
North attacks on land, at sea, in cyberspace
The Sewol sinks, youthful souls it takes
Park Geun-hye protested, arrested
Immeshed, impeached, imprisoned
Moon Jae-in steps into Chungwa-dae
Number 12 for Korea, number 10 for me
Wintry Pyongchang puts on Olympic display
Parasite wins Oscar big, but Covid goes on global spree
Through 50 years of Korean memories
That young idealist has melted away
But through it all and come what may
A wiser man resides today
* An earlier version of this poem appeared in the November 2021 issue of the Gwangju News. Published here with permission.
About the Author
David Shaffer flew into Korea fifty years ago as a U.S. Peace Corps volunteer in Gwangju; but after four years, he somehow missed his return flight. He then took up a position at Chosun University, where he spent his ELT-TESOL-linguistics teaching career. Dr. Shaffer has been a KOTESOL member since its infancy and has served for multiple years as treasurer, Research Committee chair, Gwangju-Jeonnam Chapter president, and national president (2017–2019). He is presently Publications Committee chair and is serving on his twenty-second International Conference Committee.
