“Sam Sook, I would like to take Se Ri with me this morning.”
“Where are you going, Eomma?”
“To the school. To visit Lady Bit Na and her daughter-in-law, Kim Jung Sook.”
“The school?” Sam Sook didn’t remember a school.
“It’s a school Kim Jung Sook opened to teach the daughters of the lords to read and write. Among other things.”
Sam Sook wrinkled her brow. “Are you wanting to enroll Se Ri?”
Lady Yang nodded. “Yes. There is a girl near her age there. Bo A. I think that she and Se Ri will become fast friends. Kim Jung Sook took the young lady under her wing over a year ago now. She is her apprentice. She’s a sweet girl.”
“Mmm.” Sam Sook nodded. “We will all go with you.”
She glanced down at her tiny mite. “Se Yeon, we’re going to visit a ladies’ school.”
The little girl jumped up and down in her excitement. “Yay! We’re going to visit a school!” Then she furrowed her miniscule brow as she gazed up at her mother out of wide, obsidian eyes. “What’s a school, Eomma?”
Sam Sook chuckled. “It’s a place where young ladies learn how to read and write.”
“Can I, Eomma? Can I?” Se Yeon continued to bounce on her toes.
“We shall see, darling. We’ll ask if there’s an extra parchment for you to use. Maybe you can draw Eomma a picture too.”
Se Yeon jumped towards the door. “Let’s go!”
Sam Sook glanced up at her older daughter who had just entered the room. “Hey, sleepyhead. You slept really late this morning. Are you feeling all right?”
Something seemed off with Se Ri. Her usual smile wasn’t in evidence this morning.
“I’m all right, Eomma.”
“Are you ready to meet Bo A, love?” her grandmother quizzed her just then.
The girl’s eyes lit up fractionally. “Yes. I – can I grab some breakfast first?”
“Absolutely. We’ll head to the school when you’re done eating.”
Lady Yang commanded a servant to bring her granddaughter something to eat.
Half an hour later, the four of them walked the short distance to the school. Se Ri seemed to brighten a little under the warm sunshine. But not enough to reassure her mother.
“Se Ri. Did you not sleep well last night?”
“Not really, Eomma.”
“New bed?”
“Mmm.” The girl nodded her head.
“Are you excited to make a new friend today?”
Se Ri smiled faintly. “I am.”
But she had bigger things preying on her mind now.
A few minutes later, their little group entered Jung Sook’s school. The teacher exclaimed happily as the door opened and she recognized Lady Yang. Curiously, her eyes passed over the remainder of her entourage.
“Lady Yang! This must be your daughter. And your granddaughters?” the cheerful woman greeted them brightly.
“Indeed. Kim Jung Sook, this is my daughter, Jeong Sam Sook. And these pretty, little girls are my pride and joy. Se Ri and Se Yeon.”
Jung Sook giggled suddenly as she watched the antics of the younger girl. The curious creature had stepped right up to her desk and was in the process of reaching for a quill. She’d already liberated a sheet of parchment.
“Se Yeon, would you like to draw something?”
The tiny girl stopped her movements and glanced sheepishly up at the teacher before bobbing her head enthusiastically.
“Excellent. I see you’ve already found some parchment and a pen.”
“Oh! Se Yeon!” her mother began to rebuke the little girl.
But Jung Sook simply smiled at her, murmuring, “It’s just fine,” before turning her attention back to the three-year-old. “I’ll get you some ink. You can sit at this table over here.” She glanced up at Sam Sook. “Has she used a quill and ink before?”
Sam Sook laughed. “Oh, yes! Quite often actually. She loves to draw.”
“Perfect! It just so happens to be time for sketching.”
A general wave of approval flowed around the classroom as the girls who had been immersed in calculations glanced up in relief at these welcome words.
Jung Sook looked at her class. “Shall we take a break from sums to draw flowers for our botany books?”
As one, her class gratefully bobbed their heads. It seemed that the sun had just risen in her classroom as every single smile was unearthed from beneath a pile of math problems. The girls shoved their sum parchments to the side and reached for clean sheets of parchment as Jung Sook turned back towards her guests.
“Come with me,” she instructed Se Yeon.
Once she’d settled the little girl at a table and made sure that she was using her pen properly, she turned towards the older girl.
“And you must be Se Ri. I have heard so much about you from your grandmother!” she welcomed the older girl with a wide grin.
“You have?” the child breathed.
Jung Sook bobbed her head. “And I know someone who is very eager to meet you.”
Se Ri’s face brightened as Jung Sook glanced across the room at one particular girl. “Bo A! Come meet Jeong Se Ri.”
Bo A nearly flew out of her chair. She had been awaiting the arrival of her new friend for a couple of weeks now. She was quite eager to make her acquaintance. All of the other girls in this school were older than she, and she had longed for a friend for several months now.
She hurried across the room and came to a quick stop next to Jung Sook. But her eyes were riveted to Se Ri’s face.
“Se Ri, this is An Bo A. Bo A, this is Jeong Se Ri,” Jung Sook introduced the two girls.
“Hi, Jeong Se Ri! I am so happy to meet you!”
Se Ri eyed the older girl curiously. “You are?” she asked a little hesitantly. But then her mother cleared her throat. So she greeted her new friend politely. “Hello, An Bo A.”
“Would you like to sit next to me?” Bo A offered.
“Sure.” Se Ri smiled at her and followed her across the room.
“Kim Jung Sook, is there something that you need help with today?” Lady Yang asked.
“Oh!” the young teacher glanced at the noble lady in surprise. “You wish to stay and help?”
Lady Yang nodded her head.
“I am available too,” Sam Sook offered in a strong voice.
“Thank you, ladies. Actually, I have several projects going. And quite a few students who could use some one-on-one help if either of you ladies excels in reading, writing, or arithmetic.”
Lady Yang grimaced. “Don’t give me the sums. I’ve always been horrible at them.”
“Lady Yang, would you like a private session with me?” Jung Sook teased her lightheartedly.
But that noble lady’s face lit up. “Could you really teach me? Do you know a trick for understanding them?”
She’d caught the teacher by surprise. Jung Sook’s demeanor turned earnest. “Actually, I do. If you are serious, I would be more than happy to help you.”
Lady Yang glanced at her daughter. “Sam Sook has always excelled in the area of mathematics. When she was little, she always helped me keep my accounts. I would have been completely lost when she moved had my third daughter not also had her father’s talent with numbers.”
Sam Sook interposed, “Have you any students you wish me to work with right now? I can handle any of the subjects you named.”
“Actually,” Jung Sook gave her an assessing glance before her eyes drifted towards a far corner of the room. “Do you see that young lady at the back? She is a bit older than the other girls,” she spoke in a confidential whisper, “and has been having trouble writing poetry. The other students have already turned in their poems, but she has not.” The teacher grimaced. “I’m concerned that she’s not planning on doing the assignment.”
“Ah. I have always had an appreciation for poetry and songs. I will see if I can help her.” Sam Sook started to move in the student’s direction but stopped suddenly and turned back to face the instructor. “What’s her name?”
“Lang Kyong.”
Sam Sook smiled at her new friend. “Thanks.” Then she headed towards the girl. She appeared to be only a couple of years younger than Sam Sook, and she wondered if the girl was married yet.
She found an empty seat across the table from her and sent her a sweet smile. “Hello. My name is Jeong Sam Sook. Your teacher said that you’re working on a poem.”
Kyong grimaced at her. “I deplore poetry,” she grumbled under her breath.
“Would you like some help?” Sam Sook offered.
The girl stared at her in surprise. “You want to help me?” She glanced around the room at the other students. None of them had bothered to befriend her. Except for the tiny girl, Bo A. And Kyong had long since stopped trying to interest the older girls in a friendship with her.
“Absolutely,” Sam Sook beamed at her. “I hope you don’t think me nosy, but I was wondering if you are married.”
Kyong nodded. “I am. I’m also not of the nobility. My husband is a shopkeeper.”
Her eyebrows smacking the rafters, Sam Sook breathed, “And he lets you miss work to come learn?”
Kyong bobbed her head. “He has no head for numbers and needs my help. So he allows me to come to school twice a week. As long as I keep his books for him at night. I help in the shop during my days off from school too.”
“I applaud you. It cannot be easy to juggle all of that.”
Startled by such praise, Kyong glanced up into Sam Sook’s eyes.
“How long have you been married?” the older girl queried.
“Two years.”
“Have you been a student for long?”
Kyong nodded. “About four months. Kim Jung Sook has been amazed with my progress in sums. Not so much with my attempts at poetry.”
“Oh. I don’t believe that! Your teacher seems very sweet.”
“Oh! She is!” The woman’s eyes widened.
“Surely, she was pleased with any attempt you made to tackle a difficult subject.”
“That’s the problem,” she murmured glancing down at her book of sums.
“What’s the problem?” Sam Sook leaned over and stared at the paper. In the hope that it would illuminate her confusion.
“I haven’t tried to write a poem. I haven’t the faintest idea where to begin. Kim Jung Sook told me to think about something that I’m passionate about.”
“That’s a splendid idea! A very good place to start.”
“But I couldn’t think of anything that I’m passionate about.”
“Nothing? Hmm. Well, what’s something you like? Or…do you have a dream for your life?”
The girl shrugged. Her face clouded over. “I very much want a child. But so far…nothing’s happened.”
Sam Sook could feel the girl’s shame. “Hey, it’s okay. Sometimes, it takes a while.”
“Does it?” Kyong glanced up at her in surprise. “All my village friends have children already. They all got pregnant within a year of their marriage.”
“It’s early days yet. Sometimes it can take quite a while. I’ve known several ladies who waited years to have a child.”
Alarmed, Kyong met her gaze again. “That’s what I’m afraid of. That I can’t have any children.”
“Ah, but all of those ladies – save one – went on to have a child. Some of them had more than one. Don’t distress yourself.”
Kyong’s countenance softened as she continued to stare at her.
Sam Sook glanced at her thoughtfully for a moment. “Think of it this way. Right now, you have time to concentrate on your schooling. And to help your husband at the shop. That would be quite challenging if you also had a baby to care for. Wouldn’t it?”
Kyong gave her a faint smile. “That’s true.” She cleared her throat and sat up straighter. “Where do you suggest we begin?” She glanced down at the clean piece of parchment she’d just pulled from her pile of papers.
“How about you write a poem about the baby you’d like to have?”
Interest lit up the woman’s face. “Like…my dream child?”
Sam Sook’s face was suddenly illuminated by a sweet curve of her lips. “Exactly.”
Several minutes passed as Kyong worked on putting her thoughts and desires down on her sheet of parchment. Sam Sook took a peek at her paper and saw that she was proceeding brilliantly. So as the girl worked, the young mother glanced over at her happy toddler. And was instantly alarmed to discover that the tiny girl had overturned her well of ink and a pool of the black liquid was perilously approaching the edge of her table, threatening to turn her white robe a deep midnight.
“Excuse me!” Sam Sook gasped as she flung herself out of her chair and tore across the room towards her daughter.
The little girl glanced up. “Eomma! Look what I drew for you!” she called cheerfully.
Sam Sook reached into her pocket and pulled out a handkerchief. She tossed it down onto the ebony puddle. After she ensured that her daughter’s dress was no longer in danger of being dyed black, Sam Sook bent over the picture that Se Yeon had drawn for her. She held back a chuckle as she studied the little girl’s sketch in a desperate bid to figure out what the child had drawn.
“Can you tell me about your sketch, Se Yeon?” she finally asked.
“It’s a chicken, Eomma.”
This time Sam Sook couldn’t bite back her giggle. It erupted to the delight of her own mother who glanced up from the child she was helping to watch her daughter and granddaughter.
“It’s a marvelous chicken, Se Yeon. But I think maybe we should find you a new project. All your ink spilled.”
“What’s my new project, Eomma?”
“Hmm…” Sam Sook glanced around the room. “I do not know…”
Jung Sook wandered their way and noticed the black handkerchief. “Oh, dear. I see you’ve suffered a spill. Your poor handkerchief is ruined now.”
“A small price to pay. It was either my handkerchief or her robe.”
Jung Sook chortled, and her eyes locked with Sam Sook’s as they shared the humorous moment. “Indeed.”
“Teacher? What can I do now?” asked Se Yeon.
Jung Sook smiled down at the tiny girl. “Do you want to learn how to read?”
Se Yeon’s eyes grew wide. “Yes!” she breathed. “Can I?”
The teacher grinned at her. “Absolutely. Come with me, and I will pull out my first reading parchment.” She reached down and took the child’s hand to lead her to her desk.
Sam Sook smiled faintly as she watched her daughter confidently striding across the room with the teacher. Then she returned to her own pupil. And was pleasantly surprised to discover that Kyong had completed an entire poem during her absence.
“May I read it?”
The girl bobbed her head sheepishly as she pushed the parchment towards Sam Sook.
She accepted the paper as her eyes perused the characters the other woman had carefully penned.
“How I wonder what you will be.
I wonder what I’ll come to see.
A beautiful, precious baby,
A wee girl or a boy for me.
I simply desire a child sweet
To embrace with my loving arms.
Small one, you make my life complete
And woo my heart with all your charms.”
“It’s beautiful,” breathed Sam Sook after a few moments.
“Really?” Kyong asked in surprise as she looked up at the other woman with disbelief shining in her eyes.
The young mother nodded. “It’s adorable. Just like your baby will be.”
Kyong’s countenance melted in tenderness as a wave of vulnerability flowed over it. “Thank you,” she whispered.
And they both knew that she was thanking the other woman for more than just her help writing a poem.
