출판사 리뷰
Meet the people who make a caring city.
Meet your Seoul mates.
The warmth of a city grows from the everyday moments of people who stay beside one another. 『Seoul Mate 365』 captures the stories of those who help shape a caring Seoul.
Here, you will meet the steadfast, caring mates of Seoul. From the Humanities of Hope Program, community restaurants, Seoul Software Academy (SeSAC), to Stepping Stone Income, the book follows the lives of friends whose life’s seeds take root and grow through the cycle of the 24 solar terms. In their journeys?blooming amid both heat and cold, hope and uncertainty?you will discover messages of courage and comfort.
To help you experience a more caring Seoul, the book offers: My Caring Words, where you write down passages that resonate with you; My Caring Diary, where where simple questions invite reflection on your own moments of care; and Companionship Through the 24 Solar Terms, bookmarks that capture how our daily lives and Seoul’s stories of companionship shift with the seasons. These pages allow the caring moments held within Seoul to gently seep into your day.
Now, shall we turn the page?
Your journey of care begins?with friends by your side and the city of Seoul.
None of us is in life alone.
Some lose their way, some falter at life’s thresholds, and some remain long in silence.
But what if, in those moments, the city reached out first?
That wish is contained in the title Seoul Mate 365.
A companion who stays by your side, 365 days a year.
A friend-like presence that reaches out first, even when you don’t call?quietly walking through life with you.
It is a promise that the city will play that role, and this book captures the stories of countless people and policies that have brought that promise to life.
Caring Seoul, Faces in the City That Walk Side by Side
We live in Seoul, passing by countless people every day. At first glance, it may seem like a complex, busy space?but within it have always been neighbors who quietly make room beside you, systems that offer warm responses, and people who willingly reach out a helping hand.
Why does the city talk about “caring Seoul”?
Because the city is not simply a collection of buildings and roads, but a community shaped by human connections and the warmth that fills the space between them.
The policies Seoul has pursued with the vision of “Seoul, My Seoul” are not merely welfare measures, but the institutional expression of citizens’ daily strength to live together, with mutual respect and care.
This book captures both the implementers and beneficiaries of those caring policies?and the moments when care quietly seeped into their lives.
Through the themes of caregiving, inclusion, mutual prosperity, coexistence, recovery, and connection, we hope to show how Seoul, as a living city, moves in caring ways toward its people.
Seoul is no longer a distant or unfamiliar city.
For some, it is a place of daily recovery;
for others, a fence that shelters new dreams;
_ and for many, a friend?a “mate” to lean on without
hesitation when they’re lost.
To you who open this book, we hope Seoul becomes that kind of caring mate.
Just because you're a caregiver doesn't mean you should push yourself too far back-I hope you also work hard at caring for yourself. It won't be easy, but so that caregiving doesn't become your entire life, I hope you don't let go of your dreams and make time for them. We are all amazing people doing our best in this intense world. It may sound obvious, but I want to leave you with this: I hope you become someone who knows how to love and encourage yourself, someone who is caring toward both yourself and others.
Lee Ju-bin: So Caregiving Doesn't Become Your Entire LifeThey hugged me and said, "Thank you for protecting our country." It had been four years since my injury. I realized I had never once thought of myself as someone who was injured while protecting the country. I'd heard countless words of concern-but it was the first time anyone had said, "Thank you." At that moment, the word honor stopped feeling abstract. It became something real and alive.
Lee Ju-eun: Hearing the Words: Thank you, You're Still Amazing
