Sunday, March 12, 2006
All You Need Is Love
What does one do after a night of alcohol, karaoke, nachos, dancing and pointy two-inch heels?
Two hours of Taekwondo, of course!
Prior to class I inspected my feet. Bruised, yellow and cracked. That's what two hours a day, six days a week will do to you.
After our kicking drills we slid the windows open and thrust our heads and chests outside. The bitter chill dried the sweat and steadied the manic beatings of my heart.
I looked at the teenage boys to my right, saw their wide, toothy grins and thought of how young they were. So carefree and innocent. Not so different from the monks I met months ago.
I remembered how it was for me at fourteen, the great romance I felt for this sport. How I learned something new about my body everyday, how I thought I was capable of great things, how large and muscular I felt.
"What do you do here for fun?" I asked a Korean last night in Hongdae.
"See friends," she said, self-consciously. "Dance, drink, have dinner."
Westerners aren't so different, I thought. "Do you have any hobbies?"
"No. No time. And you?"
"I take Korean language classes, study Buddhism and do Taekwondo."
"Wow . . . You're so small and beautiful," she said, looking over my scrawny arms. "I don't know any women who do Taekwondo. Yoga, yes. Martial arts, no."
"You should try it. It's very relaxing."
"Maybe. It's not ladylike, is it?" We stared at each other for a moment before she meekly added, "Men don't like strong women."
I sighed and finished my drink.
Edited to add that the final two chapters of "Full Moon" should come out by the end of the week. Also, I swept my floor. Boy, did it look nasty.
Pia at 4:19 PM
