This man, Dr. Yong-hun Lee, is one of my favorite people. He is a lecturer in the Department of English Language and Literature at Hannam University. It was in 2006 that I first met him in class. My friends and I were surprised that he is a handicapped person with cerebral palsy. I couldn't accept how such a disabled person would teach students at a university. There was unconscious prejudice against the physically handicapped inside of me, which I never knew I had. After a short while, however, I greatly regretted my preconception. He was a well-prepared, brilliant and passionate instructor. Not only was his teaching method concise, but he tried to lead his students to the right path. He was a nice and humorous man who had a heart for students. He was a TEACHER. Thanks to him, my understandings about English linguistics have been broadened, and it inspired me to come to a graduate program. He encouraged me so that I can do it. Now, I am studying with him at a graduate school and I see him offering as many academic opportunities as possible to me and my classmates. It is a big joy to learn from him.
Unfortunately, most people, if not all, still have a biased view about the handicapped. I think this appearance-oriented society also makes us judge others by the outer image we look at. However, through my experience with Dr. Lee, I came to realize that there are just those who have less comfortable bodies than us. I reflected on my silly prejudice. Through him, my eyes got opened wider. What makes us us is what we have inside, not outside. There also have been so many disabled in the world that had made a significant contribution to our world, such as Steven Hawking and Helen Keller. He is my Steven and he is my Helen. I really want you to see Dr. Lee and have a chat with him. In five minutes, you would have a totally different view about disabled people. He is a true seu-seung (an honorific Korean word for teacher who leads students like shepherd) in Hannam.
-- Yeseul Park
No comments:
Post a Comment