A few days later, after finishing the morning cleaning, Eun-chae was scrolling through social media on her phone when a thought suddenly crossed her mind.
"Gran, do you know about that Instagram thing people use these days?"
Grandma, who was sorting side-dish containers on the veranda, tilted her head.
"What?"
"Instagram. You know, that app where you post pictures."
"I don't know anything like that. I've heard people talk about it on TV."
Eun-chae picked up her phone and sat down beside Grandma.
"You post pictures and short messages, and people look at them and hit Like. These days, a lot of businesses promote themselves that way."
"Does the guesthouse need to do that too?"
"Yeah. Everyone seems to be doing it these days. Booking platforms alone aren't enough. A lot of people see pretty pictures on social media and end up coming to visit."
Grandma stared at the screen, looking intrigued.
"So what do you post?"
"Food pictures, pictures of the yard, pictures of the kitchen garden. All kinds of things like that."
As examples, Eun-chae showed Grandma several accounts belonging to other guesthouses. There were flashy breakfast photos, yards glowing beneath the setting sun, and screenshots of reviews left by guests.
"Oh, these are really pretty. They took them well."
"Right? I was thinking we could make an account like this for us, too."
Grandma thought for a moment before asking,
"You'll manage it, right?"
"Yeah, I'll do it. You just have to help me take pictures once in a while."
"I don't know how to do that kind of thing."
"You don't have to know. These days, pictures of the kitchen garden, chrysanthemum tea steeping, or your hands making side dishes—those are all good content, too."
Eun-chae immediately started creating an account. She chose the username "sandeulswim_pension." For the profile picture, she used a view of the yard, and she filled in the bio with "A quiet country guesthouse with a kitchen garden 🌿."
"Gran, what should we post first?"
"You know that picture of the potted plant the guests liked last time? Post that."
Eun-chae searched through her photo gallery and found a picture of the potted plant by the window. The lettuce had grown into a lush little cluster.
"This one's good."
She added a short caption beneath the picture.
*"Lettuce we transplanted from our kitchen garden is growing by the guest-room window 🌱 Starting small, one thing at a time, with care."*
When she tapped the Post button, Grandma peered at the screen as if it were magic.
"People can already see it?"
"Yeah, it's up already."
Not even a few minutes after she posted it, a Like notification popped up. Eun-chae checked the screen, marveling at it.
"Gran, look. Someone already liked it."
"Who was it?"
"Someone I don't know. They probably found us through the hashtags."
"What's a hashtag?"
Eun-chae pointed to the tags beneath the post.
"These—#countryguesthouse, #kitchengardenguesthouse, things like that. When people search those words, our account shows up."
Grandma kept staring at the screen, fascinated by how it worked.
"Back then, all you had to do was put up a sign, and people passing by would see it and come in. Things are different these days."
"Exactly. The world has changed a lot."
Eun-chae wondered what to post next, then went out into the yard and took a picture of the kitchen garden. The lettuce leaves shimmered in the morning sunlight. After that, she went into the kitchen and secretly took a picture of Grandma's hands as she steeped chrysanthemum tea.
"Gran, hold your hands just like that for a second."
"What are you doing all of a sudden?"
"Taking a picture. It came out pretty."
Grandma awkwardly froze her hands and shot Eun-chae a sidelong glance. Eun-chae quickly took another picture of even that expression.
Over the next few days, Eun-chae kept posting pictures. Lettuce being picked from the kitchen garden, the process of setting the breakfast table, and even the back of a guest's dog running around the yard. As the posts piled up one by one, her followers gradually increased, too.
About a week later, Eun-chae checked her phone when she heard a notification. A comment had been posted by an unfamiliar account.
*"Whoa, where is this?? This looks like it would be so healing 😭"*
Eun-chae replied to the comment.
*"We're a small guesthouse in a rural village in Chungcheong-do! Come visit anytime :)"*
As soon as she finished replying, a booking inquiry notification popped up as well. Eun-chae called out to Grandma in surprise.
"Gran! We got a booking inquiry from someone who saw us on Instagram!"
Grandma came out of the kitchen and looked at the screen.
"Really? Already?"
"Yeah. They said it's a couple's trip next month."
Grandma gave a short laugh as she watched her.
"See? The world has changed. I'm learning a little of it thanks to you."
"So you know a little about Instagram now, Gran?"
"I don't know. But I know this thing works."
Eun-chae set down her phone and suddenly looked toward the kitchen garden.
"That's right, Grandma. Is there any space left in the kitchen garden? I thought it might be nice to grow some herbs or something."
Grandma tilted her head.
"What are you going to do with herbs?"
"They'd be good to post on Instagram, and we could use them when we make tea for the guests. Rosemary or mint, things like that."
"Will those grow here, too?"
"We'll have to look into it. But I hear cafés and guesthouses grow them a lot these days."
Grandma walked toward the kitchen garden, pointing here and there with her fingertips.
"There's an empty spot at the far end, beside the lettuce. You can plant them there."
Eun-chae looked over the spot. There was a fairly wide stretch of bare soil beside the lettuce bed.
"Oh, that's perfect. Rosemary and mint would look pretty here."
"But where do you buy those?"
"We can order seedlings online. Or we could go to a local plant nursery."
Grandma thought for a moment before saying,
"There's a nursery in town. Let's stop by when we go shopping tomorrow."
"Really? Great."
Eun-chae opened her spreadsheet and added two new items.
*Buy herb seedlings (rosemary, mint)* *Create an herb section in the kitchen garden*
As she placed them in the Not Started column, Eun-chae was already imagining what the finished garden would look like. Butterflies drifting among the green herbs, and herself posting a picture of it on Instagram.
"Gran, I heard herbs need slightly different care. You can't water them too much, and they need plenty of sunlight."
"That's true for lettuce, too. Everything has its own way of growing."
"How do you know all this, Gran?"
"I don't. You learn by planting things. You learn by killing a few along the way."
Eun-chae laughed at that. It was exactly the way she'd learned over the past few months.
"Then what should we buy first when we go to the nursery tomorrow?"
"Rosemary and mint to start with. Ask the owner, and they'll recommend anything else that suits this area's climate."
"Okay, let's go tomorrow."
Eun-chae looked once more at the empty spot at the edge of the kitchen garden. Soon, new greenery would take root there, too.
Eun-chae sat on the veranda and opened her laptop. As she brought up the spreadsheet, she murmured,
"Let's see. What do I need to do, and what's in progress?"
She scanned up and down the screen.
**In Progress** - Tax accountant consultation (visit scheduled for next week) - Managing the Instagram account - Confirming next month's couple's booking
**Not Started** - Buy herb seedlings (rosemary, mint) - Create an herb section in the kitchen garden - Prepare to attend the kimjang gathering
"Gran, this week we've got the kimjang gathering and a trip to the nursery, and the tax accountant consultation is next week. We've got a lot to do."
Grandma sat down beside her and looked at the screen.
"It may look like a lot, but if you do it one thing at a time, it'll be done before you know it."
"Exactly. But I actually enjoy looking at this list now. I can see at a glance what's piling up and what's disappearing."
Eun-chae scrolled through the Completed column again. From her business registration certificate to the fire inspection, succession filing, changing the name on the card terminal, and opening a business bank account, everything she'd accomplished over the past two months filled the screen.
"Gran, looking at this, I feel like I've really done a lot."
"You have. You started out not knowing a thing."
"There's still a lot I don't know. Taxes, for one."
"You learn what you don't know, one thing at a time."
Eun-chae closed the laptop and looked out at the yard. The lettuce in the kitchen garden, the herb section that would soon take root, and the upcoming kimjang gathering. The work never seemed to end, but somehow, it made her feel secure.
"Gran, what time should we go to the nursery tomorrow?"
"Early in the morning is best. We can do our shopping, too."
"Then let's leave at eight."
"Sounds good."
Eun-chae added one last item to the list.
*Tomorrow's schedule: nursery + grocery shopping (8:00 a.m.)*
As she tidied up the laptop, Eun-chae felt that the day had been filled with one worthwhile thing after another. The evening sunlight was slowly staining the yard red.
Author's Note I opened up a new chapter with running an Instagram account and creating an herb section. Next chapter, we'll visit the nursery and prepare for the kimjang gathering.