K-dramas are full of funny, dramatic and even confusingly translated lines but occasionally a character will say something profound. Scattered between all the often repeated "I love you" and "Don't leave me" lines there are some wise and comforting words.
Here are a few of our favorite k-drama words of wisdom and why they resonate. Since some belong to current dramas, be aware that there may be spoilers.
The second episode of "I Need Romance 3" had something to say about the importance of admitting you are in pain:
When Shin Joo Yeon, played by Kim So Yeon, pretends her boyfriend's cheating doesn't hurt her, Sung Joon tells her that being cool is all about emotional honesty, something she has forgotten.
"Being cool means admitting that you're in pain, without worrying what others might think," he says.
This week Empress Ki covered the fear many expectant women face:
When Ha Ji Won's character Sungnyang worried about being a good mother, Lady Noh counseled her, saying "All first mothers feel that way but there is no one stronger than a mother. The heavens have given women strength of will in lieu of a strong body."
Sungnyang is as physically strong as any male warrior but those lines comforted her.
The romantic comedy "I Do I Do" talked about the importance of asking for help.
Park Gun Hyung tells Kim Sun Ah that she may need to change her perspective and approach to life. "If you always look forward," he says. "It does not necessarily mean you will go straight. In order to go straight, you have to look to your side and rear and check the traffic signs. And you have to ask for directions from other people."
"School 2013" talked about suicide as a choice that pressured teens may be driven to. Jang Nara plays a teacher counseling a student who considered suicide. Her words are gentle and encouraging, free of reprimand.
"At least once in your life you will want to die," said Jang Nara. "It's not wrong to want to die but it's a great thing to overcome that desire to die and live."
And the dark melodrama "Missing You" used the image of a streetlamp to say something about optimism.
When Park Yoochun is talking about the streetlamp that he met Yoon Eun Hye under, he emphasizes his determined attitude in finding her again.
"There is a streetlight in front of Soo Yeon's house," said his character Jung Woo. "From there to home, it takes 280 steps. If we have been walking away from each other for 14 years, how many steps will it take to get back? If she doesn't come even if I wait, that doesn't mean that she abandoned me... it means she is on her way."
