Yeah but, What If?

On my way to school yesterday, I heard a few machine gun rounds being fired up north. I heard it again when I stepped out to get a "rice fist." It really got me thinking "Yeah but, what if?" I was outside with Michael, so I turned and asked him what he would do if North Korea attacked. The first thing he said was, "I would stay." He reminded me that he was in the Marines, but told me that he was a combat correspondent. Asking if I had ever seen Full Metal Jacket, he described his job as Joker's job. It sounded very romantic -- to be so deeply involved in a war and not have a gun or an enemy -- but I was certainly jealous. He explained how he would go down to the base in Seoul and sign up.

"How long would it take to walk to Seoul," I asked, presuming that would be the only way to get there.

"I'd take the bus."

"Wouldn't it be full."

"No. The Koreans would all be at home, crouched in the basement."

Then I began to think. Truly, there can only be two options. Either the bus is packed with people hanging out of the windows or it isn't running because the driver is with his family and no one is working. Ever since arriving, I have often found myself staring at concrete walls and outcrops, imagining myself crouched there, hopelessly trying to avoid radiation. Sometimes, It is like an out of body experience -- seeing myself diving behind a concrete wall and watching my flesh melt away from my body. But really, if North Korea launched a nuclear missile that would be all that I could do.

This morning I woke to the cacophonous sound of a helicopter. It sounded like it was landing on my head. I ran to the window to see. It was a double whirlie -- like the name of our library, I think. I went back to my room, no way North Korea has one of those. It got me thinking about the possibility of an airstrike. It wouldn't happen to me here in Majeon. There are better places to target. Questions just kept filling my head. What if they marched into Majeon? How long would their food rations last? Would a Korean soldier see me as a valuable asset? Dead or alive? I think if I heard firefight in the distance, I would go to the roof and see what I could see. Then I would check my email, pack a bag of some stuff that might keep me alive, and run for the trees. I figure an army won't spend a long time in Majeon before moving on, and certainly won't have time to clear the woods.

Still, the children are outside playing and screaming every day. Each day is no different than before. The machine guns somberly brought me my wits, but the children laugh and play like it is any other day. It is as if they don't even hear a machine gun, or perhaps they don't know what it is. I've only spoken to a few people who have fought in the Korean War (one of them worked at Walmart), but they are old, old, old. The voices of that time will soon be gone and all that will remain is a misunderstood division.