Saturday, March 31, 2012

My cousin and I

Today I spent a wonderful catch up time with my cousin. We are both nearing sixty in age.

We grew up together as children until she was five and I was three and half. That is when her family left to go to US. I remember nothing of those years. I remember the first day I saw her. I was eleven and she was almost thirteen, the first day my family immigrated to US. I remember her telling me of Cinderella musical she loved. She knew all the songs, In my own little Corner and many more. We spent hours being totally in love with being with each other...that is how it seemed to me. She knew no Korean and I knew no English.

We spent portions of every summer together. I looked forward to those times. I could unload all the secrets of my heart; my frustrations, my outlook on life, my aspirations, my fears, and my dreams. I watched her with admiration. English became her native tongue and she fully understood American culture as I was forever trying to catch up in both. We found deep camaraderie in the fact we were caught in Korean parent(s) wishes and hopes according to Korean culture and our desire to be who we are. We compared notes about our parents. We talked about so many things about life. Then college years came and went. We got married and became very busy with our separate lives and we did not see much of each other... few of weddings, my father's funeral, and a family gathering two years ago.

We are both empty-nesters now. We decided that we will meet again and regularly...not too ambitious so it is do-able.

We are the same persons who loved to be with each other. We still communicated as we always did. Yet we changed. We have learned to accept life. Life has a way of twisting and turning and often we cannot see the bend coming up. Accept and flow with it then life can the best it can be.

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Kimchi Family

Today Tom and I finished watching all twenty-four episodes of Kimchi Family on Hulu.

A couple of weeks ago, Tom found this series for us to watch. I was so moved. He does not like watching foreign films much because he has to read subtitles, and that is too much for his taste. This foreign film is Korean.

We fell in love with not just the story but with each of the characters. We cried with them, we laughed and shouted Hooray with them, and shook with fear (well me) and sighed when things became okay.

It was not until about the twelfth episode that I realized that this is very much a picture of the healing Inn that the good Samaritan in the Bible brought a man beaten by robbers. In the midst of the beautiful scenery of mountains and rivers, there is an old traditional restaurant that has been in the family for several generations. The restaurant is called Chun Ji In (Chun – heaven or heavenly; Ji – Earth or Earthly; In – man). So the name of the restaurant is Heavenly Earthly Man or Heaven Earth Man. In the drama's subtitles it is called Earth and Man, which I did not notice until about episode twelve since I was not reading subtitles. I realized that the subtitle interpretation for the restaurant name did not do justice to the story.

This restaurant drew emotionally wounded people whether they are from wealth, success, gangs, or poverty. So many wounded came...abandoned by someone, leaving someone, unable to forgive oneself, unable to forgive others, hating of self, unable to love others, hating of others, deeply longing to be loved...each person with his own unique wound.

They were drawn to Chun Ji In restaurant where their healing began often without their realization.

I considered myself. A person with seemingly no wound yet when the Lord started to heal me, I realized that I was filled with wounds.

This is story of redemption, forgiveness, restoration, and healing. Each episode drew us into the story to the point we were unable to be released from watching the next episode.

Today, the day after we finished the story, I miss the characters and I miss the special time that Tom and I had while watching this story. We have watched so many things together, yet this was so special.

I wonder if the author is a Christian.
God heals our inner souls. We are all wounded one way or another, and He restores us.
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
He restoreth my soul (Psalm 23:1–3)