“I wanted to climb a tree and go fishing, but I heard that you were waiting for me, so I quickly came here. I hope you will invite me to come again sometime.”

       “Well, of course. Of course I will. President Moon, do you like to hunt? I like hunting very much. I think if you go bear hunting on Mount Baekdu, you will enjoy it very much. Bears have big bodies and look uncoordinated, but they are actually very nimble. 

       “I once came face to face with a bear,” he continued. “the bear looked at me and didn’t move a muscle. If I had started to run, you know what would have happened, don’t you? So what was I going to do?

       I stared right back at him and just stood there. One hour passed, then two hours, three hours. But the bear just kept staring at me. You know how Mount Baekdu is famous for being cold. I was afraid I might freeze to death before the bear ate me.”

       “So what happened?”

       “Well, President Moon, do you see the bear sitting here, or do you see me?”

       I laughed out loud, and President Kim immediately followed with a suggestion.

       “President Moon,” he said, “the next time you come, let’s go hunting together on Mount Baekdu.”

       I responded quickly with my own invitation.

       “Mr. President, you like to fish, don’t you? On Kodiak Island in Alaska, you can catch halibut that are as big as bears. Let’s go fishing for those sometime.”

       “Halibut as big as bears? Well, I will definitely have to go.”

       The two of us were able to communicate well about our shared hobbies of hunting and fishing. At one point, we each felt we had so much to say to the other that we just started talking like old friends meeting after a long separation. Our laughter echoed around the dining room.