Taek Min Kim / Chapter 4 Final Draft / Narrative Composition / Tuesday 11am

Trip to my childhood

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Taek Min Kim

It was a long trip from my home to my Grandparents house, when I was a child every time I went there I was so tired that I surely needed some sleep in the car. When me, and my family had arrived at my grandparent's house however, I came back to life and started exploring around since it was a fantastic playground for me to play. Their house was on Duksan, Chungcheongbuk-do and was located on the foothills of a mountain which I can't remember the name.

Located on the foothills of a mountain, there was a bamboo forest. The bamboo trees were tall and straight. When the wind passes through the trees they made a howling sound as if there were some monsters hiding. One of the dead trees lying on the ground became my sword and my spear for my imaginary wars with monsters living in the mountains. The monsters were always furious and breathe fires on their mouths but my sword and spears made of wood never got burned. I always won the war with the mighty wooden weapons because I was the hero of my imaginary battles.

There was a fireplace outside just few steps away from the house. The fireplace was fun thing to play with too. I loved watching the fire inside the fireplace and the smell of burning wood and papers were good to me. Winter was the best time for me and my cousins to burn something in the fireplace. It melted me and my cousins with a warm fire. The fire from the fireplace had melted the snow nearby making a magical boundary of warmth. Making and watching fires were so interesting and beautiful to me back then. I was captivated by the fire dancing inside.

The Confucian temple called Hyanggyo in Korean was standing right besides my Grandparents house. It was another playground for me but actually it was a forbidden ground for me because it was not my grandparent's property and people who owned it didn't like kids running inside. But, I played inside the Hyanggyo when nobody was watching me, because I was curious about the place. It was nothing special, just an ordinary old Korean style structure built by wood and roof tiles. However, since adults almost banned me going inside the building, it was exciting for me to just get inside.

Grandparents were the reason I liked their house too. They always greeted me with a big smile on their faces and since I was the eldest son of their eldest son (my father) they gave me so much love. They always tried to feed me something delicious and make me fun and giggling until I leave. They made me the sword with a bamboo for me to make the monsters go away and gave me something to burn in the fireplace also they gave me delicious treats like cookies and candies.

My Grandparent's house was a one of the best playground in my childhood. It provided younger me exciting place to spread my imagination and gave me lots of good memories. I am sure that if you saw me at my Grandparent's house back then, I think you can tell how I was in my childhood. Now when I go to my Grandparent's house for traditional holidays like Chuseok or New Year's Day I feel as if I am having a trip to my childhood.