English Original
My mom only had one eye. I hated her. She was such an embarrassment.
She ran a small shop at a flea market, selling old clothes and other items to support us. Once, during a field day in elementary school, she came. I was mortified. I threw her a hateful look and ran away. The next day, my classmates taunted me, "Your mom only has one eye?!"
I was furious and wished she would disappear. I confronted her, "Why don't you have the other eye?! You're making me a laughingstock!" She didn't respond. I felt a twinge of guilt, but also satisfaction for speaking my mind.
Despite a pinching feeling in my heart, my hatred for my one-eyed mother and our poverty persisted. I vowed to succeed. I studied hard, was accepted into Seoul University, left home, built a career, got married, bought a house, and had children. I was happy in Seoul, a place that didn't remind me of my past.
That happiness shattered one day with a knock at the door. It was my mother, still with one eye. My daughter ran away, scared. I screamed, "Who are you? I don't know you! How dare you scare my daughter!" She quietly replied, "Oh, I'm so sorry. I must have the wrong address," and left.
Later, I received a letter regarding a school reunion. Lying to my wife about a business trip, I attended. Afterwards, driven by curiosity, I visited our old shack. I found my mother lying on the cold ground. I did not shed a tear.
Then I saw a paper in her hand—a letter to me.
My son,
I think my life has been long enough now, and I won't visit Seoul anymore. But would it be too much to ask you to visit me once in a while? I miss you. I was glad to hear you were coming for the reunion, but I decided not to go… for you. I'm sorry I only have one eye and was an embarrassment.
You see, when you were little, you had an accident and lost your eye. As a mother, I couldn't bear you growing up with only one. So, I gave you mine. I was so proud to see a whole new world through your eyes. I was never upset with you. When you were angry, I thought, 'It's because he loves me.'
My son… oh, my son…
Don't cry for me when I'm gone. I love you so much.
中文翻译
我的妈妈只有一只眼睛。我恨她。她让我感到如此难堪。
她在跳蚤市场经营一个小摊，靠卖旧衣服和其他物品来维持我们的生活。小学时有一次运动会，她来了。我感到无比羞愧，狠狠地瞪了她一眼就跑开了。第二天，同学们嘲笑我：“你妈妈只有一只眼睛？！”
我愤怒极了，希望她从世界上消失。我质问她：“你为什么没有另一只眼睛？！你只会让我成为笑柄！”她没有回应。我感到一丝内疚，但也为说出了心里话而满足。
尽管心中有一丝刺痛，但我对独眼母亲和贫穷的憎恨依然存在。我发誓要出人头地。我努力学习，考上了首尔大学，离开了家，建立了事业，结了婚，买了房子，有了孩子。我在首尔生活得很幸福，这里不会让我想起过去。
有一天，敲门声打破了这份幸福。是我的母亲，仍然只有一只眼睛。我的女儿被吓跑了。我吼道：“你是谁？我不认识你！你怎么敢来我家吓唬我女儿！”她平静地回答：“哦，对不起，我一定是找错地址了。”然后便离开了。
后来，我收到一封关于同学聚会的信。我骗妻子出差，回去参加了聚会。之后，出于好奇，我去了我们曾经的旧棚屋。我发现母亲倒在冰冷的地上。我一滴眼泪也没流。
然后，我看到她手里有一张纸——是写给我的信。
我的儿子：
我想我的生命已经足够长了，我不会再去首尔了。但能否请你偶尔来看看我？我很想你。听说你要回来参加聚会，我很高兴，但我决定不去了……为了你。我很抱歉我只有一只眼睛，让你难堪了。
你知道吗，你很小的时候发生了一场意外，失去了一只眼睛。作为一个母亲，我无法忍受你只能用一只眼睛长大。所以，我把我的给了你。看到你能用那只眼睛为我看到一个全新的世界，我感到无比自豪。我从未因你所做的任何事而生你的气。当你对我发火时，我告诉自己，‘那是因为他爱我。’
我的儿子……哦，我的儿子……
我死后不要为我哭泣。我非常爱你。