“Now, I Know Why I Have Whiskers”

Mr. Kim just repeated “I’m sorry,” over and over, shedding tears from the moment he saw his son.

His son Dawson said, “I’m so thankful for meeting you. Today is the happiest day for me,” hugging his father. His father looked so sorry, but the son was all smiles on his face out of delight in meeting his father. Dawson presented a sweater with the logo of the U.S. national team to his father, and his father wore it proudly on the spot.

Father and son looked very much the same. Dawson said “Now I know where my whiskers came from. Compared to my father’s, mine are just baby whiskers,” grinning and fiddling with his father’s whiskers. Mr. Kim said “When you were four, you jumped from a table and hurt your face. Let me see. You still have a scar around your left eye.” After checking his son’s face like that, tears swelled in his eyes.

Dawson asked to his father “I have a good life that is lucky and full of opportunities thanks to my step parents. But, until now, I have been very confused. Why did you lose me and fail to find me?” The father said shedding tears, “After losing you at a market, I tried everything to find you. But, I failed in the end.” And then, as Dawson said “I did not find you to blame you. I found you to let you know that I have a good and lucky life,” Kim’s face brightened.

Dawson said, “Many Korean adoptees lose confidence out of the agony of having a different skin color from their parents. I will make efforts to help adopted children become a respectable individuals through the ‘Toby Dawson foundation’ that I have established.”

Dawson met and hugged his biological brother, Hyun-cheol (24), introduced his fiancé to his father, and had lunch together. Dawson will leave for the U.S. on March 4 after finishing his formal schedule in Korea such as visiting Holt Children’s Services.

yjongk@donga.com