Preface: Beautiful Alone, Even More Beautiful Together_Jeon Young-ae

Chapter 1 “The road has begun.
“Finish your journey.”

You must never stop learning
How Goethe Dealt with the Problem
Silently, continue, just on the right path
Love saves
A person's home is half of his life.

Chapter 2: “A book should be an axe to break the frozen sea within us.”

A Textbook of Love, "Seo-Dong Poetry Collection"
There are many paths in life: The Brothers Grimm
When you feel lost and have no way out: Franz Kafka
Going Through Painful Times: Hermann Hesse

Chapter 3: “If you have wandered as long as I have, try to love life as I do.”

My nourishment, faith and earnestness
A pencil and a white bowl
The best day of my life
A community garden we nurture together
I don't necessarily think about death.

Chapter 4: A Journey in Search of Goethe

Letter from Weimar
Letter from Italy

Carrying a few bricks to build a book_Choi Kyung-eun

Learn Goethe's Wisdom from Professor Jeon Young-ae, a world-renowned German literature scholar.

Professor Emeritus Jeon Young-ae of Seoul National University, who garnered attention through KBS 1TV's "Documentary Insight: Seventy-Two, the Garden of Margins" and EBS 1TV's "Architecture Exploration House," has published a new essay, "Life Lessons from Grandma Goethe," by Munhakdongne.
Professor Jeon Yeong-ae, renowned as an exceptional gardener who cultivates the beautiful gardens of Yeobaekseowon and Goethe Village, delivers a message of comfort to those struggling through this new book, melting the hearts of many.
Although she is a scholar who has devoted her life to academics, she is also a friendly grandmother who has captured the hearts of 'grandmothers' with her simple daily life, which is introduced through the YouTube channel 'Grandma Goethe TV'.
Watching him, with his graying hair and shabby clothes, running faster than most young people, pulling out weeds, and translating Goethe's works at night by the light of a small lantern, I feel a sense of freshness in the midst of increasingly stimulating visual media.
The slightly crude thumbnail and the scenes that continue peacefully and calmly without much editing blend well with the author's personality and capture the hearts of people in Sinabro.


『Grandma Goethe's Life Lessons』 is a book that completely captures the profound thoughts on life of Professor Jeon Yeong-ae, a world-renowned German literature scholar with a gentle impression.
It offers a wise voice to help solve the major life problems that most people struggle with, such as how to properly achieve your goals, how to overcome the hardships that inevitably come, how to properly raise a growing child, how to overcome the fear of death, and how to live together rather than alone.
In a reading market dominated by messages about surviving in a harsh world, the author's message, embodying the importance of rest, caring for others, and growing old naturally, feels powerfully appealing.

For Professor Jeon Young-ae, the beginning and end of her studies is Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.
The 'Goldene Goethe-Medalle' he received in Weimar, Germany in 2011 is an incredible achievement, the first of its kind for an Asian scholar and a woman.
He is currently working on translating all of Goethe's writings and publishing a Korean edition of the "Complete Works of Goethe." Considering that this is a national project in China that mobilizes 120 scholars, it is truly a monumental undertaking.
Besides Goethe, there are countless literary works that have passed through Professor Jeon Yeong-ae's path.
Most of the most widely read translations of classics that influenced the times, such as Hermann Hesse's Demian and Franz Kafka's The Metamorphosis and The Country Doctor, which most readers, now adults, would have read when they were children, were all from his hands.
Although we live in an era where many publishers publish world literature anthologies, giving readers a wider range of choices, many still cite the book he translated as the "one book" that had the greatest influence on their lives.
Professor Jeon Young-ae received the 2020 Samsung Happiness Award for Women's Creativity in recognition of her contributions to Goethe research and translation.
He was also recognized as an outstanding poet when he received the Rainer Kunze Prize, an award given to a poet writing poetry in German, in 2021.


The voice of a true adult resonates in a heartless society.

We live in an age where everyone loudly proclaims that they must succeed and that they must be better than others.
They say that to protect yourself, you have to be more than just good; you have to be clever and consider the benefits.
However, Professor Jeon Young-ae says that it is more important to live together and support each other than to compete.
He, who hates the saying, "If you go straight, you'll get to Seoul," says that the process is as important as the result, and that the right result can only be reached through the right process.
If you listen carefully, you might think that what he says is generally a bit obvious.
‘You must live righteously,’ ‘You must confront problems head-on, not avoid them,’ ‘You must never stop learning,’ these are all pieces of advice that everyone has heard at least once or twice in their lives.
But if you think about it, most of the sayings of great people are simple.
A life that is simply simple, without artificial fanfare, and focused solely on the essence.
Perhaps that is why, when I look at Professor Jeon Young-ae, I can't help but notice her innocent, childlike appearance.
It can be an example for people these days who are losing focus because they are too concerned about what others think and are running around doing this and that.

If you look closely, the teachings of Goethe, which Professor Jeon Young-ae studied throughout her life, also have a similar shape.
As the Chancellor of the Grand Duchy of Weimar and at the same time as a writer who raised German literature to world-class standards, Goethe lived his entire life passionately, always striving to convey concise and clear wisdom to the world through his works.
The reason Professor Jeon Young-ae consistently shares Goethe's words is because she wants to show how great a person can be and how such a person raised himself.
Professor Jeon Yeong-ae runs Yeobaekseowon, a "house of books for pure people," in Yeoju, Gyeonggi Province, and has recently been working on creating a "Goethe Village."
The 'Young Goethe House', modeled after the house in Frankfurt where Goethe spent his childhood, and the small 'Garden House' where Goethe first lived in Weimar were also completed.
Just as important as the buildings that are being built one after another are the gardens, and the gardens of Yeobaekseowon and Goethe Village are community gardens that many people cultivate together.
This garden, with the slogan 'Beautiful alone, more beautiful together', was designed so that everyone can bring their favorite flowers and trees and plant them in a corner, becoming the owner, while still maintaining harmony with each other.
This beautiful and precious garden is widely known, and Professor Jeon Yeong-ae even spoke as a speaker at the '2024 International Garden Symposium', discussing the value of gardens where nature and humans coexist.


The world's warmest lesson for those who are struggling

The words in 『Grandma Goethe's Life Lessons』 were not all monotonous.
Just silently, when difficulties arise, without blaming the world, let's just walk the right path together.
Hope is not far away, and he emphasizes that the most important value for humans is 'love'.
You may not be able to make the best choice every moment, but I console myself by doing what you can with all your heart at the time.
And if you can, tell others to give you what little help you can right now.
Professor Jeon Young-ae does not burden people with heavy burdens, telling them they should do this or that.
In a paused tone, he speaks cautiously about the importance of living a righteous life, worried that his words might be misconstrued.
If something important happens, don't forget to take action immediately.
“The road has begun.
Finish your trip.
“Worry changes nothing.” Goethe’s firm words seem to contain great wisdom that we need to live our lives.


Professor Jeon Young-ae still has so much she wants to learn.
“People should always learn.
I think that not learning, not having any intention of learning, or to put it bluntly, not having any intention of living.
“If you are alive, you must continue to study.” He resembles Goethe, who said he would study even five days before he died.
If you remain indifferent to everything you see, Goethe would have thought you'd bought it all. This might sting those accustomed to the glamour displayed on social media and indifferent to anything.
If you can get excited about everything you see, every experience in the world can be a learning experience.
It is time to revisit Goethe's insight that "trembling is the best part of being human."
A cheerful old scholar who says he has no desire to live long, but wants to translate all of Goethe's works before he dies, and who still retains excitement even at the age of seventy-four.
When reading a book, it seems as if the vividness is conveyed even to those who are tired of life.
"Grandma Goethe's Life Lessons" will be the warmest gift, melting the hearts of those weary from the cold winds of this harsh era.