＜Spading Fork＞ 쇠스랑 - 윤동재 시인의 ＜쇠스랑＞

[김문철]

Spading Fork

by D.J. Yoon

I

At last, the long long winter seems to have withdrawn

Blossoms stir and birds flit through the air

The earth has fully thawed

Ready for the spading fork

Longing to take up the fork
How many times I wandered out to the field

Even if it is only a tiny patch of ground

What a blessing it is

To turn the soil by hand

When I was younger
Even though I had a field of my own

I spent each spring worrying about cultivators and tractors

Now I wonder how many springs remain

When I can no longer lift even a hand fork
Spring may come but it will not truly be spring

II

At last, the long, long winter has withdrawn,
And blossoms stir as birds salute the dawn.

The earth lies thawed beneath the warming air,
For one more season’s tilling to prepare.

How often, longing for the fork in hand,
Have I gone out to greet my patch of land?

Though it may be a little plot I’ve got,
What grace to turn the soil upon that spot!

When I was young, with fields of my own,
I dreamed of machines where seeds were sown.

Each spring, I fretted over tractors and gear,
While spring itself slipped by and disappeared.

Now I wonder how many springs remain,
How many times I’ll work the earth again.

When I can lift this little fork no more,
Spring may return, but not the spring of old age.

쇠스랑

-윤동재

긴 긴 겨울이 물러갔나 봅니다

꽃과 새들이 호들갑입니다

땅이 다 녹아

쇠스랑으로 일굴 수 있습니다

쇠스랑 들고파 몇 번이나 밭으로 나갔던가

손바닥만 한 밭이나마

쇠스랑으로 일굴 수 있다는 거

얼마나 다행입니까

젊은 날에는

밭이 있어도

경운기 타령 트랙터 타령으로 다 보내고

봄도 몇 번 남아 있으려나?

쇠스랑을 들지 못하면

봄이 와도 봄이 아니다

Spading Fork

Simple Review 感想

‘Spading Fork’ is a tender and reflective poem about aging, gratitude, and the quiet joy of working the earth by hand.

The contrast between the speaker’s younger days, when large fields, tractors, and machinery occupied his thoughts, and the present, when even a tiny patch of land feels like a blessing, reveals how time changes one’s understanding of what truly matters.

Spring is more than a season in this poem: it represents renewed life, physical strength, and the precious opportunity to remain connected to the soil.

The final lines are especially moving, as the speaker realizes that a spring in which he can no longer lift even a small fork will not feel like spring at all.

With its simple rural imagery, gentle rhyme, and honest awareness of mortality, the poem transforms an ordinary farming tool into a powerful symbol of life, dignity, memory, and enduring love for the land.

#spading fork  #spring  #life  #dignity  #memory  #earth  #farming

[김문철]

이 시는 소박한 농촌의 이미지와 잔잔한 운율, 삶의 유한성에 대한 솔직한 성찰을 통해 평범한 농기구인 쇠스랑을 생명과 존엄, 추억, 그리고 땅을 향한 변함없는 사랑을 상징하는 의미 깊은 존재로 승화시키고 있습니다. ^_^

[푸른솔]

감사합니다