[korean short stories]kim haeng sook, a chicken party

Korean Short Stories

Kim Haeng-sook A Chicken Party 닭고기 파티 Translated by Jeong Eungwi

Information This work was previously published in New Writing from Korea .

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A Chicken Party A party, exceeding climax, to wonderland. At climax. Chicken's combs we. Thin. Soft.

Passing climax chicken's combs we. As a token of love we peck at each other.

At climax. Once past climax we stop. Can love be stopped?

1 Already chickens, our stomachs and vowels like violins. Like the white and black keys of a piano. Like a drum. Like dishes in a sink. Began to play. Breast and frail wings.

Chicken's feet are crushed. Like egg bombs exploding above our heads.

From wonderland to no-wonderland. Like infiltrating moisture we. Like winds crossing seas. A little bit warm and a little bit filthy. Like music we. Like pink spring.

Like a summer day. Strong smells. We want softer skin and featherlike clothes. Singing about the things we want, back to the days before our birth. We recalled something like the smiles of old age. Our song echoes a long time. Till the end. Perfectly. Does not disappear.

People who do not come to the party take off their clothes in the early evening. Lying down in a more distant place like smaller babies. Like little girls turning their faces to one another. Fall asleep. Clap Clap Clap. Ha Ha Ha. The party moves farther away. As it flows away, it's full of the people who did not come.

Angry chickens stretch their necks

and flap.

Tottering off to Wonderland.

Copyright 2008 Literature Translation Institute of Korea