Part 1: Training for All
Part 2 Maybe something good will happen
Part 3: The Inside Story of A-geum

Epilogue

Author's Note

Alley, a youth film that passed the screening process with ambiguity and precariousness, Myeongdodan

The history of the small shops that make up the alley called Myeongdo-dan and the people who have maintained them are vividly revealed, and the friendship between Yeon-su and her three friends, Cha-min, Woo-sang, and Si-young, that naturally seeps into her brightens the inside and outside of Daeheung Supermarket.
Children who wander but are not dissolute, children who have hidden pain but do not transfer their inner pain to others.
That's why they can shamelessly and confidently get free ramen at the supermarket.
The strong power of solidarity is felt in the image of the old alley that implicitly protects Yeon-su so that the children can enjoy their fifteenth year with such pride and confidence, and so that they do not lose themselves even when unexpected misfortune strikes.


The author calls this spirit of solidarity the 'heart of affection' that we have for one another.
He can't stand being unfamiliar, so he doesn't show it on the outside, but inside, he has a thick heart that cherishes and cares for others more than anyone else.
"Everyone's Training" is a story that gives such a heart to those who live today, leaving behind painful memories.

I have never once gotten lost in Myeongdo-dan, which is famous for its maze-like alleys.
It wasn't because I was good at finding my way, but because the people of Myeongdo-dan guided me well.
-In the text

Myeongdo-dan, a labyrinthine alleyway lined with old shops by the coast, has a long history and has come to be known today under the guise of regional development.
With the creation of the Marine Park, several blocks that were previously designated as crime-ridden areas were cut down, and stores that had been holding on changed their signs and many people left, but Daeheung Supermarket remains unchanged and serves as a gathering place for the Myeongdo community.
The large round table that makes first-time visitors feel puzzled was set up by the grandfather for the Myeongdodan people who frequent the supermarket as if it were their own home.
And on the corner of the round table, the words ‘Yeonsu’s’ are clearly visible, scratched out over a long period of time with fingernails and a sharpie.


My mother who died giving birth to me, my father whose whereabouts are unknown, my aunt and uncle who took care of me, my grandparents, and the people of Myeongdodan.
That's why I can't make a fuss about the story of my birth.
-In the text

Yeonsu's mother, who grew up in an orphanage, was left alone in the world after her protection ended.
A rental house that I desperately prepared to bring my younger sibling to live with me.
There, Yeonsu's mother dies giving birth to her alone, and her young aunt takes care of Yeonsu.
A police officer who had known Yeon-su through a small connection helped Yeon-su and her aunt, and the police officer's parents, unable to stand by and watch, took Yeon-su in as a newborn and raised her.
The wonderful people who later became Yeonsu's maternal uncle and in-laws.
Yeonsu didn't have parents, but she was with them and had everything she needed.


For Yeon-su, who grew up as the granddaughter of Daeheung Supermarket, surrounded by the natural silence and affectionate tolerance of the alley, Myeongdo-dan Alley may be the same place as her origins.
Although the story of his birth has always been a question mark, the words 'Yeonsu's' engraved on the round table, which is the symbol of the Myeongdo Group, contain a deep affection and a sense of happiness and fortune because it is 'Everyone's Yeonsu'.


The moment my parents appeared, an unfortunate history entered into me.

That's how my biological father appeared.
He said that I was just a piece of evidence from that day.
-In the text

The biggest topic on Yeonsu's mind now that she's fifteen is the iPad.
Buying an iPad with your name engraved on it.
Since I have some shame, I confidently decide to work part-time at a supermarket to save up money.
Although Yeon-su lives her life as a calm and composed person in the Myungdodan, a few years ago, Yeon-su heard from her uncle that her biological father had appeared.
A person who was caught as the culprit of a certain incident by Yeon-su's uncle, who works as a police officer.
And the incredible stories about his mother poured out of his mouth.
One day, the uncle calmly tells Yeon-su and her aunt the stories he had known for years.
I thought that Yeon-su had to know, and only then could she protect herself.


As the family's guardian, the uncle had no choice but to believe the biological father's claims, and the aunt and Yeon-su had no choice but to accept the lie as truth.
The Yeonsu family is helplessly swayed by the evil that exploits people's good intentions.
Through the image of the Yeonsu family, the author says that those who are helplessly suffering heartache are not foolishly ignorant or have done something wrong, and that those who provoke those who endure and hold on to this day are evil.
And through Yeonsu's figure who finally overcomes that painful time with the power of social solidarity and friendship, it conveys deep comfort and support.


We don't call this rebellion.
Because I'm living my best life.

Suddenly, my vision became bright and I felt like everything that was there before was still there, and that I was living the same life as before.
At the supermarket checkout counter.
Welcome.
-In the text

For Yeon-su, who had been the most cared for child in the world without parents, the appearance of parents who shattered her imagination and fantasy broke her heart.
Yeonsu, who was confused but unable to express her feelings to those who had become her guardians, decided not to make any friends after entering her second year of middle school.
However, like the neighbors who keep calling Yeon-su's name in the alley, Cha-min, Woo-sang, and Si-young, who are tied together by a group project, keep sitting together at Yeon-su's precious round table.


We were not ashamed of our fifteen years.
So I think I have the right to laugh and chat happily.
-In the text

Yeonsu learns that even her seemingly harmless friends have their own worries and wounds.
And the times when they sit around a deserted ocean park watching horror movies, sitting around a round table sharing a large pot of ramen, and chatting away while making silly jokes all add to Yeonsu's comfortable daily life.
As Yeon-soo is the first to notice the problems that Cha-min, who she thought was just a rich only son who received a lot of allowance, is facing, Yeon-soo feels that the problems that had been filling her heart are gradually becoming smaller.
The alley that watched over him, the goodwill of that alley spreads to his friends again in Yeonsu.