Thinking of the small ears of grass bugs

There is a piece of writing titled “Autumn Flowers” in Lee Tae-jun’s collection of essays titled, “Museorok (which means writings written out of order).” “Autumn flowers do not know of a haze and a song of a bird. Blooming and falling in cold moonlight and in the sound of old bugs is their sorrow and honor.” This smart novelist always said the right thing. And thanks to his words, we, the future generations, are able to enjoy the sound of bugs, cold moonlight, and autumn flowers.

Not only flowers that bloom and fall in the sound of bugs, our hearts are also moved by the sound of bugs. It is all the more so for poets, who tend to be more sensitive. Poets may have thought of themselves watching bugs, which are born with little power but endure a difficult life in the big world.

This poem resonates deeply with bugs. Poet Kim Ki-taek recalls bugs, especially the one with the smallest size and the smallest voice. Even though the poet cannot actually hear it, he can imagine it. The poet thinks of weaker bugs hanging in dark places.

This poem tells us about the things that go unnoticed in this world, where only people with loud voice receive attention. A voice that is too small to be heard is still a voice. A weak heart that is too afraid to step up is still a heart. We sometimes need to hear what cannot be heard.