Archer's Quest by Linda Sue Park
Jeez, it's not like I'm asking for—for a car or anything like that. It's just archery lessons. What's the big deal?
"Um, I'll pay for them myself. Out of my allowance." Pause. "I mean, after I finish paying for the window."
His dad looked up again. "What? Oh, it's not that. But I never expected—well, I guess I'm surprised, that's all."
Kevin nodded. "Yeah, I know. I mean, I know it's not popular or anything. But I was thinking it might be fun."
"Well, it's funny you should ask. I don't think I ever told you—"
Just then a car horn sounded outside, three quick toots. Ah-jee's usual signal that they'd arrived.
Kevin and his dad went to the door as his mom came out of the kitchen. Ah-mee and Ah-jee came in, and for a few minutes everything was a confusion of hugs and kisses and greetings and Ah-mee handing Kevin's mom a plate of homemade dumplings. While Ah-mee took off her coat and boots, Ah-jee went back out to the car. He returned carrying two tall, awkwardly wrapped packages.
"Hold these for a minute, would you, Kevin?" he said. "No peeking or poking."
Kevin grinned. His belated birthday present. Two of them!
Ah-jee struggled out of his wraps, then took the packages back from Kevin. "Come on in here, ladies," he called. Ah-mee and Kevin's mom hurried back from the kitchen. Everyone sat down in the living room.
"One for you," Ah-jee said, handing one of the packages to Kevin. "Happy birthday. But don't open it yet. And this one is for your dad."
"For me?" Kevin's dad said as he took the package.
"What in the world?" Kevin's mom said.
"You have to open them at the same time," Ah-mee said.
"Okay," Kevin said.
"Ready ... set ... go!" his dad said, and together they tore off the wrapping paper.
Kevin couldn't believe his eyes.
He was holding a bow and a quiver of arrows.
"No way," he whispered.
A coincidence? Wow. An awfully BIG one ... How big does a coincidence have to be before it's magic?
"My goodness!" his mom said. But she wasn't looking at Kevin's gift; she was looking at his dad's.
Kevin looked, too, and saw another bow and quiver. His own bow was brand-new, but his dad's had clearly been used before.
"Is this what I think it is?" his dad said. "Is it—"
"—your old bow!" Ah-mee crowed. "We found it down in the basement. And we had it cleaned up and restrung and we got you a new quiver and arrows, and now you can teach Kevin how to shoot!"
Kevin's mouth fell open in disbelief. He stared at his father. "You know how to do archery?"
"I used to shoot some," his dad said with a shrug, "when I was younger."
Ah-jee chuckled. "You 'used to shoot'? Boy, you can say that again," he said proudly. "Kevin, your dad was a Youth Champion when he was your age!"
The King of the Nerds was an archery champion?
"You're kidding!" Kevin blurted out. "How come you never told me?"
"I guess I thought you wouldn't be interested," his dad mumbled. "You said it yourself—archery's not exactly a hot sport these days."
Kevin didn't say anything for a moment. His dad was right—he probably wouldn't have been interested before....
"So did you guess?" Ah-jee asked, looking at Kevin.
"Huh?"
"We thought you'd guessed what your present was," Ah-mee said, "when you called to ask about Chu-mong."
"Oh. Oh, that," Kevin said. "No, I didn't know. Honest."
"Chu-mong?" his dad said. "I haven't heard that name in years. He was a big hero of mine."
"Oh! I just remembered—the time you dressed up like him for Halloween!" Ah-mee said. "You were so disappointed when none of the neighbors knew who he was."
"Yeah, I guess I do remember that," Kevin's dad said. He turned to Kevin. "Did you know that he was supposed to be the greatest archer who ever lived?"
Kevin bit his lip so he wouldn't laugh out loud. "Yeah, I think I heard that somewhere," he said. Then he put the bow and quiver down carefully and gave each of his grandparents a hug. "Thanks, Ah-jee and Ah-mee. It's awesome—I can't wait to try it out."
His dad cleared his throat. "Kevin, I should probably warn you. It's not much fun at first. It's going to be a while before you get the hang of it—it's a very precise sport."
Kevin nodded. Suddenly, something occurred to him. "Like math," he said. "It's like math, isn't it? Really exact."
His dad raised his eyebrows. "I never thought about it like that before, but yes, I guess you could say it has a lot in common with math."
"I bet when you get it right—when you aim good and let it go just right and everything—I bet you know for sure it's going to hit the target before it even gets there."
A nod from his dad. "That's pretty much it," he agreed. "The opposite, too. When you let go of a bad shot, you know you're in trouble."
Kevin tried to imagine the perfect shot, but he didn't know enough about archery yet. Would it be hard to pull back on the bowstring? Could he keep it steady and pull at the same time? He might not have any talent at all for archery. But he was going to stick with it long enough to find out.
"Tell Kevin about that one year at the regional meet," Ah-jee was saying. "'75, wasn't it? Or '74? That was an incredible competition."
"I don't know—it was a long time ago," Kevin's dad said. He looked a little embarrassed. "Seems like ancient history now."
"I'd like to hear about it, Dad," Kevin said eagerly, "maybe after I have my first lesson?"
"Okay. How about later this afternoon?" His dad smiled.
Kevin grinned back and picked up his bow. "How about now?"
* * *
The Chinese Zodiac
Even though Kevin and his family are of Korean heritage, not Chinese, they are familiar with the Chinese lunar calendar and zodiac. For thousands of years following its emergence as a nation and a people, Korea used a lunar calendar. In the early 19th century, Korea accepted the use of the Chinese calendar as a gesture of respect and fealty. Korea now uses the solar, or "Western," calendar. However, traditions such as lunar holidays and the Chinese zodiac are still widely honored.
RAT: Charming, expressive, social. Efficient, organized, talented. Stubborn, difficult to work with, can be stingy.
Jan. 24, 1936 – Feb. 10, 1937: Fire
Feb. 10, 1948 – Jan. 28, 1949: Earth
Jan. 28, 1960 – Feb. 14, 1961: Metal
Feb. 15, 1972 – Feb. 2, 1973: Water
Feb. 2, 1984 – Feb. 19, 1985: Wood
Feb. 19, 1996 – Feb. 6, 1997: Fire
OX: Hard-working, persistent, deep-thinking. Patient, caring, loyal. Judgmental, dogmatic, conservative.
Feb. 11, 1937 – Jan. 30, 1938: Fire
Jan. 29, 1949 – Feb. 16, 1950: Earth
Feb. 15, 1961 – Feb. 4, 1962: Metal
Feb. 3, 1973 – Jan. 22, 1974: Water
Feb. 20, 1985 – Feb. 8, 1986: Wood
Feb. 7, 1997 – Jan. 27, 1998: Fire
TIGER: Authoritative, confident, magnetic. Daring, adventurous, courageous. Unpredictable, tense, temperamental.
Jan. 31, 1938 – Feb. 18, 1939: Earth
Feb. 17, 1950 – Feb. 5, 1951: Metal
Feb. 5, 1962 – Jan. 24, 1963: Water
Jan. 23, 1974 – Feb. 10, 1975: Wood
Feb. 9, 1986 – Jan. 28, 1987: Fire
Jan. 28, 1998 – Feb. 15, 1999: Earth
RABBIT: Compassionate, faithful, kind. Serene, gentle, sweet. Insecure, timid, pessimistic.
Feb. 19, 1939 – Feb. 7, 1940: Earth
Feb. 6, 1951 – Jan. 26, 1952: Metal
Jan. 25, 1963 – Feb. 12, 1964: Water
Feb. 11, 1975 – Jan. 30, 1976: Wood
Jan. 29, 1987 – Feb. 16, 1988: Fire
Feb. 16, 1999 – Feb. 4, 2000: Earth
DRAGON: Powerful, determined, charismatic. Dynamic, self-assured, gifted. Tyrannical, short-tempered, impetuous.
Jan. 23, 192
Feb. 8, 1940 – Jan. 26, 1941: Metal
Jan. 27, 1952 – Feb. 13, 1953: Water
Feb. 13, 1964 – Feb. 1, 1965: Wood
Jan. 31, 1976 – Feb. 17, 1977: Fire
Feb. 17, 1988 – Feb. 5. 1989: Earth
SNAKE: Charming, intelligent, courteous. Decisive, intelligent, good sense of humor. Lazy, insecure, prone to dishonesty.
Feb. 10, 1929 – Jan. 29, 1930: Earth
Jan. 27, 1941 – Feb. 14, 1942: Metal
Feb. 14, 1953 – Feb. 2, 1954: Water
Feb. 2, 1965 – Jan. 20, 1966: Wood
Feb. 18, 1977 – Feb. 6, 1978: Fire
Feb. 6, 1989 – Jan. 26, 1990: Earth
HORSE: Active, energetic, quick-witted. Ambitious, hard-working, loves to travel. Impatient, conceited, rebellious.
Jan. 30, 1930 – Feb. 16, 1931: Metal
Feb. 15, 1942 – Feb. 4, 1943: Water
Feb. 3, 1954 – Jan. 23, 1955: Wood
Jan. 21, 1966 – Feb. 8, 1967: Fire
Feb. 7, 1978 – Jan. 27, 1979: Earth
Jan. 27, 1990 – Feb. 14, 1991: Metal
SHEEP: Artistic, creative, elegant. Romantic, gentle, caring. Hesitant, anxious, insecure.
Feb. 17, 1931 – Feb. 5, 1932: Metal
Feb. 5, 1943 – Jan. 24, 1944: Water
Jan. 24, 1955 – Feb. 11,1956: Wood
Feb. 9, 1967 – Jan. 29, 1968: Fire
Jan. 28, 1979 – Feb. 15, 1980: Earth
Feb. 15, 1991 – Feb. 3, 1992 : Metal
MONKEY: Cheerful, fun, sociable. Clever, curious, creative. Unreasonable, unreliable, deceptive.
Feb. 6, 1932 – Jan. 25, 1933: Water
Jan. 25, 1944 – Feb. 12, 1945: Wood
Feb. 12, 1956 – Jan. 30, 1957: Fire
Jan. 30, 1968 – Feb. 16, 1969: Earth
Feb. 16, 1980 – Feb. 4, 1981: Metal
Feb. 4, 1992 – Jan. 22, 1993: Water
ROOSTER: Perceptive, sharp-witted, straightforward. Loyal, active, practical. Vain, hyperactive, attention-seeking.
Jan. 26, 1933 -Feb. 13, 1934: Water
Feb. 13, 1945 – Feb. 1, 1946: Wood
Jan. 31, 1957 – Feb. 17, 1958: Fire
Feb. 17, 1969 – Feb. 5, 1970: Earth
Feb. 5, 1981 – Jan. 24, 1982: Metal
Jan. 23, 1993 – Feb. 9, 1994: Water
DOG: Honest, dutiful, loyal. Intelligent, profound, righteous. Anxious, defensive, can be persnickety.
Feb. 14, 1934 – Feb. 3, 1935: Wood
Feb. 2, 1946 – Jan. 21, 1947: Fire
Feb. 18, 1958 – Feb. 7, 1959: Earth
Feb. 6, 1970 – Jan. 26, 1971: Metal
Jan. 25, 1982 – Feb. 12, 1983: Water
Feb. 10, 1994 – Jan. 30, 1995: Wood
PIG: Sincere, honorable, faithful. Polite, obliging, generous. Naive, wishy-washy, prone to snobbishness.
Feb. 4, 1935 – Jan. 23, 1936: Wood
Jan. 22, 1947 – Feb. 9, 1948: Fire
Feb. 8, 1959 – Jan. 27, 1960: Earth
Jan. 27, 1971 – Feb. 14, 1972: Metal
Feb. 13, 1983 – Feb. 1, 1984: Water
Jan. 31, 1995 – Feb. 18, 1996: Wood
* * *
Author's Note
The facts about Chu-mong in this story are part of the historical record. The three stories he tells about his own life are well-known folktales in Korea, and there is a fourth tale that describes his birth from a golden egg!
The Chinese emperor Wen Wang's "Garden of Intelligence" existed around 1000 B.C It covered some 1,500 acres and was one of the earliest zoos on record.
During Chu-mong's time, the species of tiger that inhabited Korea was Panthera tigris altaica, familiarly known as the Siberian, or Amur, tiger. These magnificent animals, the largest of the cat family, once ranged across a wide area—from Russia through China and down into the Korean peninsula. Chu-mong would have been distressed to learn that the Siberian tiger is now seriously endangered. It is believed to be extinct in Korea, with only unreliable sightings reported along the border between North Korea and China. Perhaps 400 Siberian tigers are left in the entire world, most of them in eastern Russia.
Dorchester State University is fictional, but the tiger is indeed the mascot of a college in Rochester, New York—the Rochester Institute of Technology, where I taught for several years in the 1990s. And there is a majestic bronze statue of a tiger on the campus grounds. Look for it near the entrance to the bookstore.
* * *
The Math
The versions of the Chinese zodiac I was able to locate for reference go back only as far as 1900. I calculated the cycles for Archie's birth year just as Kevin did. Here is the arithmetic in a more straightforward form:
Between 55 B.C. (the year of Archie's birth) and A.D. 1986 (the year of the Tiger cycle when Kevin was born), a total of 2,040 years had passed. The year 1986 actually means that 1,985 years have passed, because there is no year A.D. 0.
55 + 1,985 = 2,040.
Twelve animals in the Chinese zodiac, one per year.
2,040 ÷ 12 = 170.
There were 170 Tiger years between Archie's birth and Kevin's birth.
Five element cycles: Fire, Earth, Metal, Water, Wood.
170 ÷ 5 = 34.
Each cycle had occurred exactly 34 times between their births, which means that Archie and Kevin were born during cycles of the same element—in their case, Fire.
Archie's birth: 55 B.C., a Fire-tiger year.
Archie at age 24, two cycles later: a Metal-tiger year.
Kevin in 1999, at age 12, one cycle after his birth: an Earth-tiger year.
* * *
Linda Sue Park, Archer's Quest