Things...

I have received shocking news from my dear old friend Chan-Won. There was a murder on Virginia Tech campus in Blacksburg. On Wednesday evening, January 21, 2009, a male Chinese graduate student has murdered a female Asian graduate student. The incident took place where I am very familiar with. My old friend Sabin lived in that building in her senior year, and I attended my freshmen orientation. The Graduate Life Center, also known as the Donaldson-Brown building is a place among many other places where I have good memories of my student life at Tech.

 

What a shame… Couple of years ago, a nation-wide tragedy breaks out, and before long enough to bury those bad memories into our past, another shocking news follows. Wednesday’s incident wasn’t reported on CNN, so I am assuming that it isn’t reported nation-wide. However, it happened, and people will start to know about it at some point.

 

Considering that Blacksburg shares variety of culture among many international students from all over the world, the murder which took place on Wednesday is quite unexpected and surprising. The recent happening and the massacre of 2007 are both hard to accept emotionally because it seems like there were no social or political issues related to them. Both events were resulted from someone (or among people) with personal issues. Since when has Virginia Tech campus become such a dangerous place to live??? What happened to the Hokie spirit of Ut Prosim, which means “That I May Serve” in Latin?

 

Shame on you Hokies… Especially on the Asian Hokies !!!

 

Think about it both, incidents were caused by an Asian -- One from a Korean American, and one from a Chinese. I know that the university is putting a lot of effort in taking care of the minorities. Under the motto Ut Prosim, the university has done a great job for a long time, and the Virginia Tech staff has pride for it. And I bet all the students know it too. With all the services that the university is providing, I bet they also have expectations on us. Why don’t we live up to their expectations?

 

I hope that people will not form any negative stereotypes whatsoever towards the Asians as a result of the two tragedies we have gone through in the past two years. While negative stereotypes might form among the people about Asians, we Hokies should at least look for one another among us. Perhaps it might be the Hokies that the public will start building negative stereotypes on and we are all Hokies aren’t we? I strongly urge the Hokies to reunite as a result of the tragic event and live by the university motto Ut Prosim.

정말 끔찍한 사건이 일어난지 벌써 1년...
그 사건으로 인해 적응못하고 힘들게 생활하면서 그렇게도 그리워하던 학교를 TV만 틀면 볼 수 있었다.
인터넷에서도 온통 우리학교에 관한 기사가 없는 곳이 없었다...


그렇게도 그리워하던 학교를 그런식으로 다시 접하게 되었을때는 엄청난 충격이었다.
물론 현지에 있었던 후배들도 큰 충격을 받았겠지만, 나의 생활에 만족하지 못하면서 학교생활만을 그리워한 나에게도 크나큰 충격이었다.
아름답고 조용했던 캠퍼스...
많은 추억이 있던 기숙사(물론 기숙사에 살지는 않았지만)와 강의실, 그리고 the Drill Field...
그런곳에서 발생한 엄청난 사건...
게다가 범인은 한국사람이었다(물론 그렇게 생각하는 미국 사람은 별로 없다)...

오랫동안 잊고 있었다...
그날 이후로 나보다 열심히 살고 있었을걸로 추측되는 억울하게 죽은 32명의 학생과 교수들을 생각하면서 힘들고 불만에 찬 생활을 참으면서 열심히 살기로 다짐했다...
난 살아있으니까...

하지만 인간은 간사한지라, 잊고 싶은건 금방 잊게 되더라...
이제 다시는 잊지 않겠다...
그렇다고 힘들고 불만에 찬 생활을 그대로 참으면서 살겠다는 것은 아니다...
나 나름대로 내 인생을 찾아서 열심히 살겠다... 그것도 열심히 사는 사람의 자세이니까...


32명의 억울한 희생자들의 1주기인 오늘(미국시간으로) 또한번 여기저기서 우리학교 기사가 보이기에 마음이 아프다.
미국 역사상 가장 잔인했던 총기 난사 사건...
그 참혹했던 사건으로부터 받은 충격을 잘 이겨낸 학교와 우리 Hokies...
그 사건을 계기로 인해 우리는 더욱 Unite하고 강해질 수 있었다...
그래서 I'm so proud to be a Hokie... 그래도 여전히 가슴 어딘가가 쓰라린건 학교를 너무 사랑하기 때문이다...