Hajin Ahn/A meaningful place/Tuesday 9 A.M

An exceptionally cozy underground                                 201301918 Hajin Ahn Generally, people would say above ground is a place overflowed with vitality while underground is a creature of the opposite nature. Yes, in terms of an image popping into our minds when thinking about underground, I have to admit that underground is considered equal to the darkness that normal people would never be willing to stay for long. However, one of the undergrounds where I used to spend time was an exception. And the very place was the underground parking lot in front of my apartment.            Despite having a stairway made directly to the underground parking lot, I never used it when going below the ground. Instead, I preferred the slope to the parking lot which was exclusively for private cars. Walking down along the wide slope for cars alone, I, as a ten years old child, felt like being the only person in the world. It made me feel a sense of superiority. What a naïve thought I had at that time! Getting nearer to the underground, similar to the weather growing colder with the approach of sunset, the cool air came out from the underground little by little and my skin erupted with gooseflesh. I shivered slightly in response to the chilliness. Strangely enough, the chilly air never annoyed or bothered me. Rather, I gained my energy from dark underground, unlike people who gained energy from the sun and were heavily weakened underground. It smelled where the sun did not shine. The bizarre scent reminded me of my school garage where all the remaining chairs and desks were piled up. I remembered I used the garage for cutting my math class several times. I never got caught. That might be one reason that I felt so much relieved and comfortable being in the underground. It was so much familiar to me.   During the day, the parking lot looked like inside my mouth with several teeth fallen out, waiting for a permanent set of teeth to come out. There was enough space for my best friend, Chaerim, and I to hang around. We did not play around the underground parking lot by foot, though. We glided on the rubber floor freely with our inline skates. The dark green floor made of rubber was very much like a well-polished ice board. No matter how fast we ran through the floor, the parking lot stayed as quite as a mouse, never making a sound. I loved hearing my heart beating in the silence. I felt alive. Above the ground, I could not imagine running as fast as I did in the underground with my inline skates as there were too many children, cars, and rough floors interrupting my eagerness for speed. As soon as the sun was sinking below the horizon, children around my age gathered between two apartment buildings for inline skating. We never clearly stated that as a race but we all knew that it was a time to compete. When a child shouted, "Go!" seven to eight children started inline skating race of 15 meters. Through the secret training underground, I always stood at the center after the race, having a smile full of pride on my face. Before then, I was too shy to stand in front of others. I thought I had nothing to show off. Thanks to the underground parking lot, however, I became the object of other children's envy. I found what I was good at, and how it was like to feel a sense of achievement. I was on cloud nine even though I behaved as if I was used to those situations. During the day, the underground parking lot provided a pleasant shape with a decent temperature. I neither had to sweat nor run at the nose. I had not visited the underground for a long time after middle school. I gradually forgot about it as I had too many things to do above ground. Last week, I walked down the stairs to the underground and noticed that it was actually the first time I used the stairs instead of the slope. It was still dark, still cool, and its floor was still smooth and green. On stepping the floor, I was surprised that it was not a place that I would like to stay for a long time just as I did when I was young. Nothing has changed except me. A ten years old naïve girl thought the place was cozy and safe, whereas a 21 years old grown-up thought it was too gloomy, dusty, and musty. The silence once a chance for the little girl to feel alive made a grown-up scared. I kept looking around to make sure no one was there to harm me. The underground parking lot was still an important place for my childhood. I would not deny I once felt comfortable being there. What I feel sad is that I am not the innocent girl anymore. I now know too much about the evils in our society, for which I was afraid to be in the dark. Still, I would never forget the peace and vigor I had while spending time in the underground parking lot.