Devastation to Greatness

Sun Rhee Chi

Description

Book 3 - The Devastation to Greatness is part of a four part series which encompasses the history of Korea from the 1940 invasion by Japan to the present. In the first volume, Mija, a Korean girl and Ichiro, a Japanese college student, accidentally fall in love. Although parents of both offspring order the two to avoid meeting, they disobey their parents and marry. Through this marriage, a variety of obstacles are created and we learn the intimate details of Korean culture, history, and manners. The conflict between Japan and Korea, symbolized in part by this unusual marriage, threatens to tear the fabric of such a union. Through the eyes of Ichiro, we learn much about South Korea, its strong work ethic, its ability to move onward against impossible odds.

Sujets

• Historical fiction

Informations

• Publié par: First Edition Design Publishing
• Date de parution: 15 mai 2013
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781622873142
• Langue: English

Extrait

The Devastation to Greatness
Chi Sun Rhee


First Edition Design Publishing
The Devastation to Greatness

Chi Sun Rhee
The Devastation to Greatness
Copyright ©2013 Chi Sun Rhee
ISBN 978-1622873-15-9 PRINT
ISBN 978-1622-873-14-2 EBOOK

LCCN 2013939426

May 2013

Published and Distributed by
First Edition Design Publishing, Inc.
P.O. Box 20217, Sarasota, FL 34276-3217
www.firsteditiondesignpublishing.com



ALL R I G H T S R E S E R V E D. No p a r t o f t h i s b oo k pub li ca t i o n m a y b e r e p r o du ce d, s t o r e d i n a r e t r i e v a l s y s t e m , o r t r a n s mit t e d i n a ny f o r m o r by a ny m e a ns ─ e l e c t r o n i c , m e c h a n i c a l , p h o t o - c o p y , r ec o r d i n g, or a ny o t h e r ─ e x ce pt b r i e f qu ot a t i o n i n r e v i e w s , w i t h o ut t h e p r i o r p e r mi ss i on o f t h e a u t h o r or publisher .
Book1
The Phantom Of Greatness

Book 2
The Way To Greatness

Book 3
The Devastation To Greatness

Book 4
The Triumph To Greatness
Table of Contents

PART ONE
CHAPTER 1
CHAPTER 2
CHAPTER 3
CHAPTER 4
PART TWO
CHAPTER 5
CHAPTER 6
CHAPTER 7
CHAPTER 8
CHAPTER 9
CHAPTER 10
CHAPTER 11
PART THREE
CHAPTER 12
CHAPTER 13
CHAPTER 14
CHAPTER 15
CHAPTER 16
CHAPTER 17
CHAPTER 18
CHAPTER 19
This book is dedicated to my children:

Tom & Hyuna Steward,
Steve & Rachelle Reed,
and Robert & Ann Rhee
BOOK 3

PART ONE
CHAPTER 1
During five years of the postwar period, from the year 1945 at the close of the Second World War until today’s outbreak of the Korean War on 25 June 1950, the whole world has been growing restlessly in new revolutionary political idealism of communism. In 1949, the Communist Party ruled the entire China of which population corresponded to one sixth of the entire world population. Furthermore, the Eastern Europe was communized, and the power of the Communist Party in French Indo China and the Philippines were reinforcing their gaining momentum of power. At this political dicey juncture of the world, on January 12, 1950, the Secretary of State of America, Dean Acheson, declared publicly that America excluded S. Korea from the American Defense Perimeter in the Pacific.
On hearing such important statement of Secretary Acheson, the world-heated debates on his stunning statement were well underway. All of a sudden, on June 25, 1950, the N. Korean Communist Military intruded S. Korea to communize Korea into one Unified Communist Country.
After getting out of the hotel, Ilyoung and Mija were on the street, being jostled by surging refugees. Likewise, an abrupt eruption of a huge volcano has just burst out accompanying with countless sparks of fire, clouds of smoke and ashes in the sky, and the fiery streams of lava. All these mass of fire were burying Seoul City, driving citizens out of the city to the south. Farther to the south, Ilyoung and Mija crushed their way through the rushing crowds toward the south to Seoul Railroad Station. More and more crowds swarmed into all over the streets. The billows of hundreds of thousands of Seoul citizens were growing into turbulence amidst the roaring waves of cannons, bombings, machineguns; screams of the young and old, cries of ambulances, trains, cars, and buses. Moreover, in the northern sky, the black clouds of smoke were rising and flocks of warplanes were zooming with endless thunderous booms of explosions. Mija felt the cold sweat moistening her palms.
As Mija and Ilyoung passed several blocks from their hotel, at several feet ahead of her, she noticed that an elderly woman with her bent back, sustaining on her cane among the rushing crowds. Suddenly, the elderly woman collapsed to the ground in the midst the fleeing human billows. Scarcely had she fallen on the ground when one man snatched her black handbag and ran away. Had the old lady stayed there for a few seconds longer, she might have died under the hundreds of human feet. Mija was making sure that she held Ilyoung’s hand tightly. She dashed to the old woman, raised the old woman’s arm up, and pulled her to the side in front of a door of a store. The old woman was awake and was able to talk even if her face was smeared with dirt and blood coming out from her nose in mild degree. Also, her white long skirt was spotted with blood. Immediately, Mija flipped swiftly the elderly woman’s skirt up and checked, but there were no bone fractures except her chafed skin in a large area on the right knee.
“My son is waiting for me to meet at next block after this,” she said and gasped the air. Mija threw her cane away, took out her own belt from her waist, and tied Ilyoung’s left wrist to her right wrist tightly so that he could not be separate from his mother.
“Ilyoung a , you must, must hold Mom’s skirt tight. Don’t loose it! Okay? Once, if you loose it, you can never see your mom again!” she ordered. Mija grabbed the old woman’s right hand and her own travel bag in her left hand.
“Grandma, hold my arm tight and walk. Otherwise, you cannot see your son forever! Look for your son’s face! Do you understand?” Mija urged. As they reached at the promised corner, one young man shrilled, “Mother! Mother! Mother! Your Chongnam is here!” he shouted and practically flew over the drifting heads of the crowd and took over his mother from Mija’s hand.
“ Aygo , Chongnam a, I thought I could see you no more!” Mother cried.
“ Gamsa hamnida !” he said to Mija quickly in deep gratitude and swept away into the moving crowds.
Mija held Ilyoung’s hand and waded into the growing tide of refugees. At last, Mija could see a building of Seoul Railroad Station. Someone called her name in the rear: “Teacher Rhee, Teacher Rhee Mija!” When she turned her head back, the man was Principal Yoo at her moonlighting Attached Middle School.
“What brought you here?” she asked.
“I came here for my brother’s wedding yesterday. I have a round bus ticket, so I am on my way to the bus station. If in case you get lost from your train and have any trouble, go to President Park Chulwoong’s office and ask his secretary to help you. Because President Park is also a Congressman, he has another house and office in Seoul City. His secretary will help you. Do you have his office telephone number and address?” he asked.
“Yes, I have. Thank you.”
“Hold your son’s hand tight all the way! I’ll see you again in Kwangju. Goodbye!” he said and disappeared into the surging crowd.
The train station seemed to be the most hurry-scurry place. Everyone tried to catch the trains. Numerous trains were in and out, steaming, puffing, and whistling blending with the people’s outcries to get on the train. By a hairbreadth, Mija and Ilyoung caught a train stopping at Kwangju City on its way to the final destination, Mokpo. The train kept on rolling, stopping, and starting to transport the people to their destination. The farther to the south, the fewer refugees were on the train.
In the late afternoon Ilyoung and Mija arrived in Kwangju City. Unlike Seoul City, the surface of Kwangju City appeared to be in order and calm as before without imminent threatening of war. Nevertheless, here political and social caldrons would already be churning in terror everywhere: the military, the police, governmental offices, schools, hospitals, and streets. Finally, she released Ilyoung from her vigilance without worrying of losing him among the sea of refugees.
• • •
On arrival at Kwangju Railroad Station safely, instantly Mija was seized with another unknown fear of uncertainty about her life in the wake of the Korean War. She had to figure out how this war would affect her life, her family, and Byunghong’s life; how could both Ilyoung and she survive war, having their renowned family history of anti-governmental activities. While walking on the street for half an hour from Kwangju Railroad Station to her lodging house, she tried to hold an axis of her disquieting mind tightly to see things in their right perspectives of her life in this confused time of war without her husband Ichiro.
The first thought flew into her mind was this Korean War shattered her bright hope going to America for further study. She muttered about her great misfortune to herself, “Alas, how can I control the happenings of the Korean War? Abandon yourself to your country’s fate and to your own fate!” Succeedingly another thought rushing into her mind was that as far as Mija’s observation, the American Government as well as Rhee Syngman ROK Government had not focused on training, increasing, or enforcing the defensive ROKA. Rather the ROK Government heavily concentrated on the special programs of the Police Forces to eradicate the Communists and Communist Guerillas from South Korea. In contrast, North Korea for last five years has solely been preparing for the increasing the offensive military forces and arms. Therefore, once the NKPA invades South Korea, the weak ROKA may be unable to resist the powerful NKPA as if the deer meet the lions face to face. In that case, Brother Byunghong would fight against the NKPA as a commander of the Police Forces. Then, no one can guarantee that his life would be safe no matter how brave and expert in fighting he may be. Lastly, Mija’s thought converged on her husband: even though Ichiro is ready to come to her or communicate with her, the communist regime—especially during war and from the foreign country—strictly blockaded the civilian communication system with foreign countries notably with Japan. Then how could she have a chance to meet her husband?
Mija, for all that, had a glimmer of hope that American Government, in her experience in the Philippines, will not give up S. Korea to the communist country. Once American Military stands up and supports this war, no matter how strong armies and weaponry the NKPA has, it would be hard to win over the American Military because America has immense mat