“You Don’t Have to Cry for Me”: A Gentle, Light Goodbye

Romi receives a sudden invitation one morning. She looks back at the life she has tended and leaves on a final journey with her beloved horse, Toma, heading for “the place where my heart is at ease.”

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I wanted to become lighter before time stopped.

In Lee Jin-min’s picture book, Romi’s neat yellow house becomes a small yellow bag. As she carries it, she gives her possessions to places that need them. Her wide-brimmed hat becomes a soft nest for new life. A clock hung on a tree becomes a birdhouse. The bag grows lighter as Romi moves on, leaving kindness and a sunlit yellow warmth behind her.

The reviewer is particularly moved by the embrace between Romi and Toma. In the turning image, Romi’s hair becomes the horse’s full tail. Unlike the prince in ‘The Happy Prince’ or the tree in ‘The Giving Tree,’ whose happiness can seem doubtful, Romi appears genuinely peaceful as she gives things away.

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You don’t have to cry for me. I have arrived safely here.

The book brings comfort, but not complete reassurance. Romi’s home is perfectly orderly, and she has no young children. The reviewer wonders whether an untidy household and unfinished life can ever become so “beautiful and light.” Still, the book offers a way to imagine death with less fear. As the author writes, “I hope the place I prepare for my farewell will be prettier than expected and happier than hoped.”

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I hope the place I prepare for my farewell will be prettier than expected and happier than hoped.