'If You Live To 100, You Might As Well Be Happy' ‘백살까지 유쾌하게 사는 법’

[김우정]

은퇴한 정신과 전문의 이근후 박사의 "백살까지 유쾌하게 나이드는 법"이라는 책에 관한 기사입니다.
그는 노화는 근본적으로 고통스러운 것으로 정의 합니다.
이박사는 노화와 질병이라는 현실속에서도 긍정적인 태도를 유지할 것을 강조합니다.
젊은 세대와 노인세대가 자연스럽고 어울릴 수 있는 정신적인/ 물리적인 공간이 많아지기 바랍니다.
 
'If You Live To 100, You Might As Well Be Happy' author explores realities of aging
‘백살까지 유쾌하게 사는 법’의 저자, 고령화의 현실을 탐구

By Park Jin-hai 박진해 기자
Posted : 2024-06-06 01:00 Updated : 2024-06-06 08:22
Korea Times

Rhee Kun-hoo, author of bestseller “If You Live To 100, You Might As Well Be Happy” / Courtesy of Family Academia “백살까지 유쾌하게 사는 법”의 저자 이근후, 가족 아카데미아 제공

Rhee Kun-hoo's book published in 16 countries
이근후씨의 책, 16개국에서 출간
 
Cover of the U.K. edition of "If You Live To 100, You Might As Well Be Happy" by Rhee Kun-hoo / Courtesy of Penguin Random House Korea
이근후 저자의 “백살까지 유쾌하게 사는 법”의 표지, 펭귄 랜덤하우스 코리아 제공

Rhee Kun-hoo is a renowned psychiatrist and best-selling author of “If You Live To 100, You Might As Well Be Happy.”
이근후씨는 유명한 정신과 의사이자 "“백살까지 유쾌하게 사는 법”의 베스트셀러 작가이다.

At 89, he is making waves internationally as his essays are translated into different languages in 16 countries this year thanks to the surge in popularity of Korean literature. Rhee said his book's global popularity stems from readers' curiosity about Korea.
89세인 그는 한국 문학의 인기에 힘입어 올해 16개국에서 자신의 에세이가 다른 언어로 번역되면서 국제적인 파장을 일으키고 있다. 그는 자신의 책이 세계적으로 인기를 얻고 있는 것은 한국에 대한 독자들의 호기심에서 비롯된 것이라고 말했다.


"Like travelers wanting to explore different corners of the world, international readers want to meet people from different cultures through books. My book gives a little journey into Korea, enabling them to see how Koreans live," the author said during an interview with The Korea Times at Family Academia, an organization that Rhee founded in 1995 to promote healthy family life in Jongno District, May 29.
저자는 5월 29일 서울 종로구에서 건강한 가정생활을 위해 1995년 설립한 패밀리 아카데미아 에서 코리아 타임즈와의 인터뷰에서 "세계 구석구석을 탐험하고 싶은 여행자들처럼 해외 독자들도 책을 통해 다른 문화권의 사람들을 만나고 싶어 한다"며 "내 책은 한국인들이 어떻게 살고 있는지를 알 수 있게 해준다"고 말했다.

His book reflects on how to live well in one's latter half of life. "A Korean saying goes 'life is two-crop farming,’ drawing a metaphor from the agricultural practice of cultivating two different crops on the same land in one year. The first half of life is lived in a rush. You don't even know how to live well. The second half of life is when you can live well because you have the experience from living the first half," he explained.
인생 후반기 잘 사는 법을 돌아보는 책이다. “한 해 같은 땅에서 두 가지 작물을 재배하는 농업 관행을 비유해 인생은 양작이라고 했다. 인생 전반은 허둥지둥 살아간다. 잘 사는 법도 모른다. 인생 후반기는 인생 경험이 있기 때문에 잘 살 수 있을 때라고” 설명했다.

Cover of the original Korean edition of Rhee Kun-hoo's "If You Live To 100, You Might As Well Be Happy" (2019) / Courtesy of Maven 이근후 저자의 한국어판 “백살까지 유쾌하게 사는 법”의 표지, 메이븐 제공

"This book is about that. When you reach your 60s, you look back on how you lived your life in the first half, reflect on it and design how you will live the second half."
"이 책은 그 내용이다. 60대가 되면 전반기를 어떻게 살았는지 돌아보고, 반성하며 후반기를 어떻게 살 것인지 설계한다."

His debut essay “I Want to Have Fun Till the Day I Die” (2013), based on his experiences as a psychiatrist over 50 years, has sold approximately 500,000 copies in Korea.
50여 년간 정신과 의사로 일한 경험을 바탕으로 한 그의 데뷔 에세이 '죽는 날까지 즐겁게 지내고 싶다'(2013)는 국내에서 50만 부가량 팔렸다.

The author's latest book “If You Live To 100, You Might As Well Be Happy” (2019) was translated into English by Suphil Lee Park and published in the United Kingdom in May.
저자가 최근 펴낸 “백살까지 유쾌하게 사는 법” (2019)는 박수필리씨가 영어로 번역해 지난 5월 영국에서 출간했다.

The book's publisher Ebury Publishing, a division of Penguin Random House UK, noted that "this comforting Korean bestseller offers guidance for attaining ordinary happiness at any age and shows us that life is a story worth reading until the very last page."
이 책의 출판사인 영국 펭귄랜덤하우스(Penguin Random House UK)의 계열사인 에버리 출판사는 "이 위안이 되는 한국 베스트셀러는 어떤 나이에도 평범한 행복을 얻을 수 있는 지침을 제공하고 삶이 마지막 페이지까지 읽을 가치가 있는 이야기라는 것을 보여준다."고 언급했다.

Despite his book's title, Rhee bluntly states there's no inherent happiness in getting older. Instead, he sees it as a fundamentally difficult process.
책 제목에도 불구하고, 이씨는 나이를 먹는 것에 내재된 행복은 없다고 단도직입적으로 말한다. 대신, 그는 그것을 근본적으로 어려운 과정으로 본다.

“What is so happy about being old? Sayings on growing older mostly say good things about aging like the word ‘noikjang,’ a Korean word meaning ‘age makes one stronger’ (based on the belief that as people age, they gain wisdom and experience). That is not true. Aging is fundamentally painful,” he said.
노익장(나이가 들면 지혜와 경험을 얻는다는 믿음에 따라 나이가 든다는 뜻의 노익장)처럼 나이가 들면 좋은 일이 많다. 노익장은 그렇지 않다. 노화는 근본적으로 고통스럽다고 말했다.

When their final days are counting down, people grow anxious about old age, but they mostly conceal their true feelings and pretend they're OK. So what should come first is acknowledging the way things are, according to Rhee.
The author asserts, "It is natural for the elderly to decline. The elderly should be the elderly. It is like climbing a mountain in terms of one's physiology reaching its peak and then going down. It's going down. How do you act as if you're going up while going down?"
마지막 날이 세어지면 사람들은 노년에 대한 불안감이 커지지만 대부분 자신의 진심을 숨기고 괜찮은 척한다. 따라서 이 교수에 따르면 우선적으로 해야 할 것은 현실을 인정하는 것이다. 저자는 "노인이 쇠락하는 것은 당연하다. 노인은 노인이어야 한다. 생리적으로 보면 산에 올라갔다가 다시 내려가는 것과 같다. 내려간다. 어떻게 내려가면서 올라가는 것처럼 행동하느냐"고 반문한다.

He encourages people to embrace this reality rather than fighting against it. "By accepting the truth, finally elderly people can find what amuses themselves within the boundaries of what they can do.”
그는 사람들이 이 현실에 맞서 싸우기보다 그것을 받아들이도록 격려한다. "진실을 받아들임으로써, 마침내 노인들은 그들이 할 수 있는 것의 경계 안에서 자신을 즐겁게 하는 것을 찾을 수 있다."
 

Rhee Kun-hoo, author of the bestselling “If You Live To 100, You Might As Well Be Happy,” speaks about his book during an interview with The Korea Times at Family Academia in Jongno District, May 29. Korea Times photo by Park Jin-hai 베스트셀러 “백살까지 유쾌하게 사는 법” 의 저자인 이근후 씨가 5월 29일 종로구 패밀리 아카데미아에서 코리아 타임즈와의 인터뷰에서 자신의 책에 대해 말하고 있다. 코리아 타임즈 사진 박진하 

Overcoming negative thinking
부정적 사고 극복

Despite these challenges, Rhee emphasizes maintaining a positive outlook, even when confronted with the physical realities of aging and illness.
이러한 어려움에도 불구하고, 이박사는 노화와 질병이라는 물리적 현실에 직면했을 때에도 긍정적인 전망을 유지할 것을 강조한다.

"It takes a lot of energy for someone with a negative outlook to become a positive person. For a positive person, it is like riding a wave. You don't have to put in much effort when you're riding a surging wave. But for someone with a negative mindset, it is like rowing against the current. It takes that much effort," he said.
"부정적인 인상을 가진 사람이 긍정적인 사람이 되기 위해서는 많은 에너지가 필요하다. 긍정적인 사람에게 그것은 파도를 타는 것과 같다. 여러분이 급증하는 파도를 탈 때 여러분은 많은 노력을 들일 필요가 있다.

"It's their mind that's negative, not their body. The body naturally ages, so you need to adapt accordingly. But if you get sick once and cling to that, all the opportunities and little pleasures that could bring you happiness will pass you by. You won't be able to see them even if they pass right in front of you, as long as you are clinging to your negativity,"
"부정적인 것은 그들의 마음이지, 그들의 몸이 아니다. 몸은 자연적으로 늙기 때문에 그에 맞게 적응할 필요가 있다. 하지만 만약 당신이 한번 병에 걸려 그것에 매달리면, 당신에게 행복을 가져다줄 수 있는 모든 기회와 작은 즐거움들이 당신을 스쳐 지나갈 것이다. 당신이 당신의 부정에 매달리는 한, 그들이 당신의 바로 앞을 지나간다고 해도 당신은 그들을 볼 수 없을 것이다.

"He believes it is time to adopt the phrase "even so."
그는 "그렇다고 해도"라는 문구를 채택할 때가 되었다고 믿는다.

The joy of an everyday life lived to the fullest helps drown out the feelings of loss and helplessness that sweep over older people. "'Even so' — if life's challenges overwhelm you, you must choose to live happily. Life doesn’t fall apart as long as you keep these little moments of joy and laughter nearby. Those moments are always within reach," Rhee said.
최선을 다해 사는 일상의 즐거움은 나이 든 사람들을 휩쓸고 지나가는 상실감과 무력감을 잠재우도록 도와준다. "그렇다고 해도"—삶의 어려움이 여러분을 압도한다면, 여러분은 행복하게 사는 것을 선택해야만 한다. 이 작은 기쁨과 웃음의 순간들을 가까이에 두고 있는 한, 삶은 무너지지 않는다. 그 순간들은 항상 손이 닿는 곳에 있다"고 이박사는 말했다.

Rhee also addressed the generational disconnect between the elderly and the young, noting that seniors, once respected, are now often reduced to mere nuisances.
이박사는 또한 노인과 젊은이들 사이의 세대 단절을 다루면서, 노인들은 한때 존경받았지만 이제는 단순한 성가신 존재로 전락하는 경우가 많다고 지적했다.

"They nag, criticize and reminisce about things that are no longer relevant ... For young people, all the things elderly people do look strange and ridiculous," he said, drawing an analogy of a person who has only lived in a country that only has the season of spring, meeting another who has only experienced autumn.
그는 "그들은 잔소리를 하고 비판하며 더 이상 관련이 없는 일들을 회상한다… 젊은이들에게 노인들이 하는 모든 일들은 이상하고 우스꽝스러워 보인다,"며 봄의 계절만 있는 나라에서 살아온 사람이 가을만 경험한 다른 사람을 만나는 비유를 그렸다.

"When these people meet they are destined to face conflicts, because their experiences are different. If they try to understand theoretically what spring world and what autumn world is like, they can start to communicate. But if not, the conflict would last forever until the end of the humanity."
"이 사람들이 만나면, 그들의 경험이 다르기 때문에, 그들은 갈등에 직면할 운명입니다. 만일 그들이 봄 세상이 어떤 것이고 가을 세상이 어떤 것인지를 이론적으로 이해하려고 노력한다면, 그들은 의사소통을 시작할 수 있다. 그러나 그렇지 않다면, 갈등은 인류가 끝날 때까지 영원히 지속될 것이다."

He says if the younger go only a layer deeper and think about why elderly people behave in a certain way, there could be ample space for older and younger people to understand each other.
그는 젊은 층이 한 층만 더 깊게 들어가 노인들이 왜 특정한 방식으로 행동하는지 생각해본다면 나이 든 사람과 젊은 사람이 서로를 이해할 수 있는 공간이 충분히 생길 수 있다고 말한다.

Rhee Kun-hoo's former YouTube channel "Rhee Kun-hoo Studio," which he ran with his grandson, is seen above. The author started a new channel, "MUHA studio." Captured from YouTube 손자와 함께 운영했던 이건후의 유튜브 채널 '이근후 스튜디오'의 위 모습이 보인다. 작가는 유튜브에서 캡처한 무하 스튜디오라는 새로운 채널을 시작했다 유투브 화면 캡처

"Younger people tend to think their fathers should be as brave as they used to be. Seeing their fathers aged and sitting unable to do anything, a sense of hatred and rage spring out of the minds of younger people. Young people should acknowledge that their fathers have grown old and that is how it is when one ages."
"젊은이들은 아버지가 예전처럼 용감해야 한다고 생각하는 경향이 있다. 아버지가 늙어 아무것도 하지 못하고 앉아 있는 모습을 보면서 젊은 사람들의 마음속에는 증오와 분노가 싹트고 있다. 젊은이들은 아버지가 늙어갔다는 것을, 나이가 들면 그렇게 된다는 것을 인정해야 한다."

Apart from giving lectures and writing books, Rhee also runs his YouTube channel "MUHA Studio," formerly "Rhee Kun-hoo Studio," with his grandson, in order to advocate for living a joyful and fulfilling life until the very end and connect with a wider audience. While he was making the video clips, Rhee has learned new words from his grandson and it was a great little joy for him, exploring new ways of communicating.
강의와 책 쓰기 외에도, 이박사는 마지막까지 즐겁고 성취감 있는 삶을 살 것을 지지하고 더 많은 청중들과 연결하기 위해 자신의 유튜브 채널인 "무하 스튜디오", 이전에 "리근후 스튜디오"를 손자와 함께 운영하고 있다. 동영상을 만드는 동안, 이박사는 손자로부터 새로운 단어들을 배웠고, 그것은 새로운 의사소통 방법을 탐구하는 그에게 큰 작은 기쁨이었다.

"My speech is old-fashioned and long-winded. These days, people don't listen if you talk too long. The words I use are different from the words my grandson uses, so when we shoot YouTube videos together, I try to use the words those young people use. I need to speak in a way that young people, who have different lifestyles and thought patterns, can understand," he said.
그는 "내 연설은 구시대적이고 장황하다. 요즘은 말을 너무 길게 하면 사람들이 듣지 않는다. 내가 쓰는 말이 손자가 쓰는 말과 달라서 유튜브 영상을 같이 찍을 때는 그 젊은이들이 쓰는 말을 쓰려고 한다. 생활방식과 사고방식이 다른 젊은이들이 이해할 수 있는 말을 해야 한다,"고 말했다.

"Society is constantly moving forward like an escalator, but if I get off the escalator because I think I have a lot of experience, I'll become illiterate. So never get off. Even if you don't study deeply, shouldn't you at least be able to understand what people are saying?"
"사회는 에스컬레이터처럼 끊임없이 전진하고 있는데, 내가 경험이 많다고 생각해서 에스컬레이터에서 내리면 문맹이 된다. 그러니 절대 내리지 마라. 깊이 공부하지 않더라도 최소한 사람들이 하는 말은 알아들을 수 있어야 하는 것 아니냐."

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