연세대학교 영어영문학과

Mona Lisa and Her Husband (64 고승일)

It was the spring of 1983 when I received a call from my brother-in-law, an incumbent court judge at that time. He sounded excited; breathlessly he recounted his plans to visit several European countries as well as the United States along with two other junior judges and a businessman with whom I too was acquainted―a Mr. Moon.

Then my brother-in-law outlined a proposal; would I consider guiding them around the European portion of their tour? He added that noneof the foursome had ever visited Europe or the U.S., and more crucially not a single one of them had a good command of English. How could I refuse such a tempting and impassioned request? I promptly agreed to look after them in Europe until they left for the U. S.

To be honest, I was really intrigued by Chairman Moon. He owned a four star hotel and ran a leading construction company. He had gained quite a reputation as a hotshot businessman in our hometown. The startling truth about his success was that his educational background did not go beyond primary school. But he had other qualities: a charming manner, and even though his critics implied he was just a glib talker, either way all agreed he conveyed a real warmth and fondness for people. When it comes to matters of honesty, human relationships, business, money, and yes, integrity, coupled with the “street smarts,” he is a black belt for sure!

So there we were: Europe. Five guys checked into the Inn on the Park Hotel in London. Michael Lion invited us to dinner that evening. He’s one of my best friends and aside from that, a celebrity of the global metals industry, but with a rare degree of understanding about the Oriental cultures. I won’t deny that I was deeply touched by the impact he made on the others, leaving them with a clear impression of the classy people with whom I am in regular contact in my business dealings as a Korean metal trader.

Michael recommended us to visit the British Museum the next day, a trip which proved to be anything but disappointing. The museum provided us with a wonderful visual opportunity to verify many of the glories of Great Britain’s history―a feast that included the chance to view many of their booties collected by the Empire ,not the least of which were mummies from Egypt, coffins, sculptures, paintings and numerous unique artifacts from an array of ancient civilizations.

Then it was off across the English Channel. We had scheduled a stay of two nights in Paris. What a dilemma! My first challenge was to prepare a list―two in fact; the things we must do, and those we would have to leave out. The measure of my success would be to see as many historical sites in the city in the time available. The three judges were heady with excitement and their very real sense of expectation at the prospect of such a lifetime enhancing experience. We engaged in a vigorous but friendly debate, scrambling to decide whether to cross off a trip to a Korean restaurant from the list or not. Chairman Moon wanted Korean food whereas the three judges had a sampling of typical French cuisine much in mind. The Korean restaurant eventually lost out.

We hired a taxi for our first day of sightseeing. This ensured that we covered as many spots as possible from our vast list―we were saving the highlight, our tour of the Louvre, for the next day. We inspected so many historical places on that first day. Napoleon is the ultimate embodiment of the term, a historic person. That explained why we inevitably talked incessantly of the sagas of Napoleon Bonaparte. The judges chattered most of all on this subject. In my judgment Chairman Moon was beginning to find the constant focus on this topic quite tedious, as he repeatedly and irksomely listened to endless incantations of the name of that historic personage.

The next day heralded our tour to the Louvre at last. Even before we crossed the threshold of the entrance I explained to them all where the Mona Lisa and Venus respectively were situated. It should surprise no one that we decided to see the Mona Lisa first.

A bevy of ten middle-aged Japanese ladies were already ensconced silently in front of the plastic covered small painting. They were appreciating it, some savoring the work with heads tilted slightly towards the left or right, others with fingers on their lips. We gently approached behind them to join this soundless piety, all lapsed in a bond of communal silence.

Obviously this veneration lasted longer than Chairman Moon had anticipated. He muttered in a very low voice, “Why are we staying here this long? There are so many other big pictures on the wall as well” No one reacted to his comment.

Afterward, Chairman Moon quietly dragged at my sleeve, causing both of us to shuffle backward a couple of meters from the group. He spoke under his breath with his mouth close to my left ear. He interrogated me urgently, “Mona Lisa, is she the wife of Napoleon?” I pulled him by his arm a step further back not to let the others listen in on our dialogue. I said, “Chairman, I too thought she was the wife of Napoleon for a long time, but later I learned that she was not. Many still think that she is.” The great businessman was by now gripping my hand quite firmly, saying to me, “Without you, I might have made a stupid mistake in front of the judges.”

Knowing that he was not shooting me a line anymore, made us both become so comfortable together. It didn’t take a long time to build up our unique rapport. I believe that happiness is what happens to us when we try to make the others happy. Nowadays he is living in the U.S. and I must confess that I pine for him from time to time, because I truly respect his philosophy on life―one that is not always exhibited by educated people.

I am still fond of my response to the chairman. It crosses my mind that my basic wisdom absolutely hit the spot―so apropos for that particular situation. I frequently make use of it as a way of depicting my perspectives to my business counter-parts, and as a basis for achieving the goals I have set for them.

Suddenly I become sentimental remembering a poem by William Butler Yeats, “The Coming of Wisdom with Time.” I would say that this sentiment might be caused by my major. Here is the verse:

Though leaves are many, the root is one;

Through all the lying days of my youth

I swayed my leaves and flowers in the sun;

Now I may wither into the truth.

All the wisdom I may have attained is derived from the time that I spent on the Yonsei campus, especially in this case with myself being in the class for Liberal Arts. I am proud of having been a student of the English Language and Literature Department of Yonsei University, and always will be. Being its alumnus is a blessing.