Annyeong haseo!
Korea here! Lately, things have been so busy in my house that I haven't even been able to visit Aniki (he must miss me so, wah, I feel sorry for you, Aniki!). Who could have thought that my ex-boss would commit suicide? I know that his honour was lost, but… It makes my eyes all teary to think about it. I never had the time to pray for him because, just after his suicide, my Nuna (older sister) decided to point her missiles at me - again! Ah, Nuna, why do you do that?

Sigh, truth is that mine and Nuna's relationship has been really bad lately. I thought it was going sort of well for a short while, but it's impossible to reason with Nuna's boss! Well, okay, honestly, my new boss is also hard to reason with. Looking at the sky, my memories are drawn to my Nuna…

When was the last time I really spoke to you? Even though we share the same blood, no other sibling nations in this world are as separated as us.

Nuna, do you ever think back at the time we lived together? We were under Aniki's protection for so long, but then that bastard Japan hurt Aniki and forced us to let him control our house! I was so mad at that time, but you were even madder, remember? Japan's boss told us that from now on, we were part of Japan and proud citizens of the Japanese Empire. We suffered a lot, were forced to work and give all our earnings to Japan. I cried a lot, but then Nuna would beat me and tell me to be a man. Nuna was always so strong! I can still feel your fist if I close my eyes.

After some more fighting with Aniki, Japan finally decided to join the Axis powers and expanded the war.

Back then, we didn't like those Western nations at all but we really hoped that they would beat Japan real bad and free us. I remember the joy when Japan surrendered, I couldn't stop jumping around and praising the spirits of the sky. Long live Korea! But you, Nuna, I remember that you seemed troubled. I wish that I had asked you about what was wrong back then.

We wanted to rebuild our house. We needed to get rid of all those things that Japan put there. Ah, it makes my blood boil when thinking about it! The worst part was that we had lost our boss. The imperial family's bloodline had been ruined forever. Japan's boss ruined it all by letting that Japanese marry our crown prince. Our sacred bloodline was dirtied by the blood of those who had hurt our nation and our people.

Well, as it was, we couldn't rebuild our house at that time anyhow. Our liberators, those Westerners, started to fight among themselves! That Russia-guy was talking about such strange things, Mr. America was easier to understand and also the man who put Japan in his place! Mr. America was now in charge of Japan, we should join him to humiliate Japan who hurt us!

I think that's where the gap appeared, Nuna.

How could you go with Russia? I don't understand, with what means did he trick you? I…I know why you hated Mr. America back then. Mr. America put the former Japanese collaborators in power without punishing them, but he told me to have faith in him. He was the one who beat Japan after all, we need to trust him and not scary Russia that has always been watching us from distance. You shouted that the best for the Korean people was with Russia and I shouted back at you that the best for the Korean people would be with Mr. America. Nuna, that was the first time we fought for real and didn't make up afterwards.

Of course I know that you are the first-born out of us. That is your right, you are my honourable Nuna. But I wouldn't have gone against you if I really didn't think that you were making a grave mistake! You said that Mr. America wasn't reliable and wouldn't be able to care for us, but Russia scares me so much! Besides, Russia has so strange ideas about socialism, it's safer to be capitalists like the other Western nations. Now that our borders are wide open, don't turn all those scary Western nations against us. Didn't you see Nuna? Didn't you see what they did to Japan? Well, of course I am happy and Japan deserved it, but, but it was insane. Japan's empire fell too quickly! We don't want that technology to be used against us, right?

Then we separated for the first time. You left for the North with Russia and I left for the South with Mr. America. The 38th parallel now marks the border that none of us may cross. I thought Nuna was just being stubborn back then so I decided to wait for you to give up behind my line of the border. Mr. America told me that they had done the same with Germany and Prussia (Japan's allies) and that everything was much safer that way. I…I don't understand why we have to receive the same treatment as the Axis but I want every Korean to be safe too!

Nuna… I can never forget the day you pointed a gun at me. And, the day I pointed my gun back at you. Thinking about it makes my tears fall, but I couldn't back down. Mr. America told me that he and I had to win, and if we won, he would make everything okay again. Don't believe those lies Russia – that stupid communist – tells you!

I thought I would die that day.

I wonder, did your resolve for the first time shudder? Nuna, you had forced your way over the border and had made almost all my lands into yours. I was driven to the coast with no way to escape. Would I die by the hands of my own Nuna? When you came against me, I remember backing so far away as possible until the ocean washed over my feet.

I know, if someone has to die, it should be the younger so that the older with wisdom may survive. By splitting up and choosing both sides, one of us was sure to survive. The survivor would rebuild our destroyed nation. But, I wasn't prepared to die that day, so I begged you to stop, to spare my life, to spare your own brother. I cried so much that I could only see you blurrily and my nose was running.

A true Korean never walks back on his decision. I was sure that you would shoot me because of that and because of showing such a disgraceful side of myself. Ah, darn, I don't know what happened since my vision was all blurry! From my point of view, you just seemed to stand there for a long while. What did your face expression look like? I wish that I knew, I can't stop wondering about it. My Nuna who is strong, determined and beautiful – why did you stop at that point?

Then suddenly, Mr. America's soldiers appeared and you had to retreat. Mr. America told me that it had been a really close call but that he had saved my life and that I should be grateful. After that, the sides were turned and my soldiers could start pushing back against your soldiers again. I remember that our people screamed in pain and sorrow, not only our family had been shattered. Everywhere was chaos, the smell of gunpowder penetrating all our lands and the sky was never clear anymore.

How was the winter for you? Mr. America hates winter because of the winter in our nation that year. It was unexpectedly cold, as if the spirits knew about our sins. I was so frozen that I thought that I'd die but I still had to fight on. But Nuna, it must have been colder for you up in the North.

When I close my eyes, I can still see how the ground was covered with corpses. 10% of all Koreans died or disappeared during the war years. Watching them lie on the ground while the frost was eating them broke my heart a thousand times. For the first time, I didn't understand how this had all happened. Maybe the chill had reached my brain too? At that point, I didn't even have any tears to spare anymore. Would the spring for us and our people ever come?

There was never a peace treaty. Mr. America told me that he was losing too many of his own Americans in the war and signed a temporary armistice with Russia. That was the last time I saw you for a long time ahead. My once so proud Nuna looked ragged, standing behind Russia at the signing of the armistice. But maybe I looked the same? Your black eyes were just staring blankly straight ahead, as were mine. Even though we were in the same room and not fighting, none of us made contact with the other. Nuna, that was the first and only time that my heart felt completely empty and drained on all emotions.

An official border that none of us were to cross. We were officially North and South and no one knew for how long it would stay like this.

Mr. America decided to stay in my new house for a while because of the chaos here. I had no idea about what you were doing but I heard rumours of that Russia were helping you rebuilding your half. Mr. America chose my government for me and then told me that he had to leave but that some of his soldiers would remain here.

For the next few decades, the military ruled both our countries. It is still difficult for me to talk about what happened back then. I know that my people continued to suffer and that mass graves were being filled up in remote areas of my half. Mr. America needed to focus on other wars of liberation and I was left alone with my violent bosses. Although all the chaos, I still remember thinking that it was so silent. I realized then that I truly couldn't hear your voice anymore, or even the voice of the Korean people left on your half. When did I lose half of my soul?

Nuna, do you remember the songs we used to sing together? Nuna has such a clear and beautiful voice in my memory. You sang such strong Korean folksongs and, surely, you could sing awesome pop songs today.

My country is modernized now, the best country in the world! I am now independent from Mr. America (even though I, of course, still respect him very much!) and for some reason, I have spent a lot of time with that bully Japan lately. He just keeps asking me to come over and play with him because I'm so much better than him! Oh, and he uses so many things of Korean origin lately!

Sigh, Nuna, your boss threatened my boss with war again. The gap between us seems wider than the ocean. People think of us as the much more extreme version of West and East Germany. The other nations say that Korea will never be one again and even our people are forgetting the time we lived in the same house. I don't know what the future will look like, or if we will ever meet and be able to talk again as sister and brother should, but Nuna, please look at the sky and think about me every now and then.
I do. When the sky is clear, I look up at it and think about you and you only. No matter what is between us and how divided we might appear, at least the sacred sky still unites Korea as one.