Finding Joy Without Leaving

This is a translated version of Kang’s final essay of a series “Where Do I Want to Live?”

In 2023, around 23 million Koreans traveled abroad. Today, TV ads and variety shows constantly tempt us to leave for unfamiliar places. For 300,000 won, you can get a round-trip ticket from Korea to Japan or Taiwan. Thanks to companies like Travel Wallet, you don’t even have to pay exchange fees and sometimes get bonus cashback for overseas purchases.

Scrolling through photos of people traveling abroad, I wondered: Is traveling the highest form of entertainment? Can we find happiness without leaving? What if we could find joy by settling in one place? Instead of seeking new places, maybe we need to look deeper into the society we live in now. How we interpret present moments can often change our lives for the better.

Sometimes it feels like leaving our current environment will solve all our problems. When someone asks me about my “next travel,” I feel pressured to say how bad my current life is. Similarly, when my dad passed away, some people advised my mom to sell the house and move to a smaller one. They thought leaving would help her overcome the grief. But my mom said she couldn’t discard the memories in that house. Now, I deeply appreciate her decision. When I go home, I find comfort in my dad’s traces in every corner.

Take a moment to understand the place we live as our hometown. Explore it with love instead of just using GPS to get around. Stay in one place, fully accepting all its experiences, and plant deep roots. This could be the true joy of life. Discovering new perspectives in familiar places and finding special moments in daily life. This could be the real adventure we’ve been waiting for.

Investing time to connect with the community around us brings happiness. Today, I joined the “Let’s Read Old Books Together” meeting in the city. It reminded me that I must actively seek out good people. When we feel connected to those who genuinely want to help others, life becomes richer instantly. Five years ago, at my apartment complex in Seoul, the elevators were almost always silent. I could not bear the lack of greetings. “Hello, have a good day, how have you been?” I missed these simple greetings. Life always felt empty in the elevators.

I want to accept the limits of our life radius. I want to find freedom by grounding my mind in one place. The joy of travel is wonderful, but so is the joy of settling. I hope to build a life by facing it, not escaping; observing the surroundings and finding newness on familiar paths.

This essay is not about forced positivity. I’m not arguing for ignoring all the negative aspects of our society. If we can bring change to our community, even better. We can pursue growth while taking time to stop and gaze at flowers and birds.

I Want to Live in the Present

After wondering where to live, I concluded, “Let’s try to live in the present.” I’ve lived in Jeju for three years, but I still can’t get around the island without GPS. Instead of feeling frustrated with the things I dislike, I want to look at Jeju with more intent. There are still so many people I haven’t met and forests and beaches I haven’t explored.

How do you find joy in your current life? I’m curious. 👀