If you’ve
been in Korea for any length of time and have suffered through
traffic on more than one occasion, you’ve probably seen "the hand
wave." Any time a driver does something incredibly obnoxious
and/or dangerous you’ll see the hand wave.
Whether the driver is pulling in front of an oncoming car, switching
lanes without notice, driving through a red light, driving onto the
sidewalk, crossing the double lines, creating a third (or fourth or
fifth) lane where there should be only two, or doing some
other unimaginable, yet creative, form of driving, you are certain
to see his or her hand raise. At that moment, all
honking of horns stop, and the obnoxious driver is allowed to
proceed with his or her violation of the traffic
law.
The hand wave
gesture is somewhere between a soft friendly wave and a strong
military salute. The hand remains open but the arm remains
somewhat firm. It can be with either the right or left
hand. The gesture apparently sends the message
that although
the signaler is doing something wrong, the receiver should allow
this action. This writer has witnessed this action countless times
and it always works, even when the signal is sent to a policeman
directing traffic.
This practice
makes the writer wonder whether this signal is used for other
activity in Korea. Can a husband give the hand
wave to his
wife before entering a room salon or some other place for illicit
activity? How about when he stumbles home drunk? Can a
teacher give the hand wave just before wacking his student with the
"love stick?" Can a motorcycle rider or pedestrian use this
gesture when he or she is violating the law? I’ve yet to see
it tried.
A thousand or
more "what if" scenarios come to mind. What if the president
of Sampoong Department, prior to covering up the cracks in his
building and running away, gave the hand wave? Would he be in
prison today for the deaths caused by his store’s
collapse? What if the Mayor of Pusan gave the hand wave while
he took that "box of apples?" Would he be on trial for
accepting the bribes that came in the box And, of course,
there is the big question; what if Chun Doo Hwan and Roh Tae Woo
gave hand waves when they took all those bribes and ordered the
troops into Kwangju back in 1980? Can they
give "after-the-fact" hand waves to excuse past behavior? So
many unanswered questions.
The Bible says
love can cover a multitude of sins. Perhaps the hand wave is a
symbol of love. It certainly covers sinful driving
habits.
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