[REAL STORY] Ms. Moon Nayoung

It is said that cherry blossoms are in full bloom in Taebaek, Gangwon-do, in May. In Jeju, they bloom in mid-March; in Seoul, from early to mid-April; and in Okinawa, they bloom at the end of January. In Australia, there are even cherry blossoms that bloom in purple rather than pink in September and October. Even when it is the same flower, the timing and appearance of the bloom differ depending on the situation it is placed in, and I feel that this is very much connected to our lives.

I think there are invisible standards in our society. Things like what one should naturally be doing at a certain stage in life. We are easily seen fearing deviation from such standards and becoming conscious of others’ gaze. Even though we know that each person blooms at a different time, and that flowers are all different, we often forget that fact.

Ms. Nayoung is someone preparing for another bloom at a later stage in life. Just watching her from the side gives me inspiration and courage. On a sunny day, I met Ms. Nayoung in Seochon, where the scent of flowers was gradually beginning to drift in.

Q. Hello. Please introduce yourself.

Hello. I am Moon Nayoung, born in 1960. Four years ago, I enrolled in the Senior Model Department at Seoul Culture Arts University to prepare for a second act in life, studied without rest for four years, and recently graduated splendidly with a Bachelor of Arts degree. I am currently active as a senior model.

Q. The Senior Model Department sounds unfamiliar. I’m curious about how you have been doing since graduation.

Actually, just a few days ago, my pet cat Cookie, whom I raised for 13 years, crossed the rainbow bridge. It was something I had anticipated, but because I had raised her like my own child, I was very sad and depressed. Still, I can’t stay discouraged forever, so I’m pulling myself together and keeping busy by practicing for an upcoming musical and taking walking lessons.

Q. That must be very upsetting. You’re also acting in a musical... I’m glad you’re staying busy as a modeltainer.

Of course. Right now, I’m using my sadness as fuel and focusing more on my work. If I just keep crying and feeling down, I’ll only get more wrinkles.

Q. That’s true. You thought it through well. So is that why you decided to have anti-aging surgery? (laughs)

(laughs) More than that, as I got older, my skin started sagging, and the wrinkles that were increasing one by one became hard to ignore. It’s such a natural thing, but it still made me sad. I can’t stop time from passing, but I thought maybe I could get around it with the help of medicine. I want to live a little younger and prettier.

Q. Then there must have been many hospitals to choose from. How did you come to know Eton Plastic Surgery?

I wondered, what kind of doctor should I meet so that I can be satisfied? I couldn’t afford to spend money only to end up with results worse than not doing it at all. I really went through consultations and introductions repeatedly over several years, but each time I couldn’t make a decision. Then I remembered a student who had worked part-time at my café about 12 years ago.

That friend had said they had previously worked at a plastic surgery clinic, so I asked them to recommend a really good doctor. They recommended Director Kim Hak-young and said, “Boss, just go and have a consultation.” That’s how I met him for the first time. But after the consultation, I thought, ‘Ah! I definitely have to do this with this person!’ In one go, he resolved the concerns and decisions I had been carrying for years. So I had double eyelid surgery, and I’m very satisfied with the result.

I have many model acquaintances who have similar concerns, and I confidently recommend him. I actually don’t usually introduce people because it’s not easy to recommend someone, but Director Kim Hak-young is someone I end up recommending. I experienced it myself and got good results.

Q. It’s interesting that you came here through a recommendation from a part-time worker. After being recommended and deciding to have surgery, weren’t you afraid?

I was, of course. It’s about having something done to your face.

Since I work in a job where I’m photographed, I was sensitive about it, but I had also been told I looked youthful and pretty quite often. (laughs) I worried unnecessarily about what if the result wasn’t satisfactory, or what if even a small mistake happened, and so on.

Q. I’m curious whether your daily life has become more satisfying after the surgery. I’d also like to know how people around you reacted.

I’m completely satisfied. People around me also say it looks natural and that I did such a good job without it being obvious, and they’re jealous.

In fact, even the people I introduced have thanked me. They said they were able to meet a great doctor thanks to Nayoung and had successful surgery.

Q. Have there been any internal or external changes in you after the surgery?

Since my appearance has become a little younger, and people around me often say I look prettier, more elegant, or that my overall vibe has changed, it naturally makes me feel good. When a person feels good, their heart becomes brighter, and that seems to make them even prettier... I think it creates a positive cycle. And because of that positive cycle, I started wanting to challenge myself with things I had wanted to try when I was younger but couldn’t. For me, that was musical theater. After finishing the musical, I started to think I’d like to do a profile tour once and show my face to people in Netflix or drama screens at home. Of course, it may not work out, but I want to do my best... That’s what I’m thinking. I want to enjoy it.

Q. That’s such a big change, isn’t it? My mother was born in 1965... When I look at my mother’s generation, it seems like they have a hard time taking on challenges. On the extreme end, they even say things like, “Why would I do that at this age when I don’t have much time left to live?” It’s not just my mother—I see many older people who find it difficult to take on challenges. Even so, where does the drive to keep challenging yourself come from?

It feels like it may be something I was born with, part of my temperament. Since I was young, I’ve had the mindset of trying everything except stealing. I wanted to try everything except things like going to the police station or hurting others, and I still feel that way. And as I mentioned earlier, my appearance has become younger too, so it feels like I’ve grown wings.

Q. Then all that’s left is to take off and fly, right? (laughs) It seems like you’ve lived through a lot of different experiences as life has matured. Then I’d like to ask what beauty means to you.

There is a saying that after your 40s, you are responsible for your own face. It means that how you have lived shows on your face.

The wrinkles that appear on your face reflect what kind of heart you have had and what kind of expressions you have mostly made while living your life.

People who always live with a smile leave beautiful wrinkles on their faces, while people who always think negatively end up with wrinkles that are unpleasant to look at.

In that sense, I think beauty means taking responsibility for my own face. Taking responsibility for your face does not only mean outward grooming, right? It also means living with a positive mindset toward life. It may sound very textbook-like, and since I was not always positive myself, it may sound hypocritical. But that is how I feel.

Q. Your answer makes me think about what kind of wrinkles I will end up with. Now for the last question. What would you say to those who are about to have surgery?

I think meeting a good doctor is the most important thing. Just as I had many concerns, people preparing for surgery will likely have many concerns as well. I think I can confidently recommend him to those people. And I also want to say that being able to invest in yourself is already a great joy.

As I finish the interview and put it all together, I find myself looking back on my past. Those days when I loved my impulsive youth so intensely. It was a time when I felt both deeply attached to the youth, romance, and passion of that time, and at the same time afraid of the fact that they would not last forever.

As time passed, that heat gradually faded, and I had come to think that warmth was only something I was losing, as my self-mocking voice grew louder, saying, ‘That’s just how the world is.’

The clear, bright heat of those days may truly be gone now. But if heat has colors, it does not necessarily have to be only refreshing. I came to think that some people may take on the deep brown color of layers upon layers of time, some may take on delicate and gentle colors, others may take on different colors, and some may make themselves more like themselves with warmth that is less hot and more lukewarm or cool.

Vitality, energy, heat. Why did I forget such a simple fact once again—that each of those words carries a different color, and that each person blooms at a different time?