Mother of Peace Chapter 7. Today's Growing Pains Bring Tomorrow's Sunshine
1. Dedicate your youth to exciting goals
Each new generation endures heartache. Sometimes, young people compare themselves to others and lament their status. A desire to give up may pop into their heads and, rather than looking within, they may feel like blaming others or the world they live in. The more difficult our situation, however, the more we have to remember our original dream.
Especially in our younger years, we face countless temptations, endless concerns and unbounded desires. The only way to manage these is to have a strong will, and this means having clearly defined objectives. The years of our youth are the best time to dedicate ourselves to exciting goals that make our hearts beat faster.
Since our youth is brief, it is important to do this without delay. We don't want to be left in regret. We need to set good goals and know who to partner with to achieve them. If we do not live vigorously and create our own path, we will end up sinking in despair and envy.
Some young people complain that adults tell them to work harder, without giving them credit for the effort they are already making. Some become pessimistic, feeling that no matter how hard they try, they can't get ahead—and that society is at fault. But they need to take an honest look at how much effort they have actually made.
Complaint and distrust will not get us far. Young people need to follow a virtuous path of sacrifice, service and love. “Youth,” by Samuel Ullman, is one of my favorite poems. I like the passage, “Youth is not a time of life; it is a state of mind.” With a purpose-driven heart, anyone, regardless of age, can live the fresh life of passionate youth.
In August 1987, Hyo-jin Moon, our eldest son, was president of the World Collegiate Association for the Research of Principles (W-CARP). In existence since 1966, CARP is a campus organization that promotes principles and raises leaders.
In that time of ideological confusion on college campuses, Hyo-jin convened the Fourth World CARP assembly in West Berlin, Germany, in the midst of thousands of pro-communist agitators who were holding demonstrations near the Wall.
They knew CARP was opposed to communism, and that 3,000 young people were attending its annual convention in the city. Groups of them protested and created disturbances outside the convention venue.
On the last day of the assembly, Hyo-jin spoke to the audience and then declared, “Let us now march to the Berlin Wall!” After a two-hour march, braving threats and disturbances along the route, they arrived at the Wall and encountered a large group of communist sympathizers. There, our members claimed the area that was reserved for their rally, pushing these counter-demonstrators away.
After an energetic rally, Hyo-jin took the stage, spoke with great passion, and then wept as he led the group in prayer at the Wall. They finished by singing the Korean song, “Our Cherished Hopes Are for Unity.” I feel that our members' praying and singing together with Hyo-jin that day were the seeds of change: Two years later, the Berlin Wall came down.
The passion of youth transcends borders and breaks down walls. Young people of true passion are those who have the spirit to challenge themselves and the world around them. Many young people today, however, seem to be losing this spirit.
Successful cultures train their youth to strengthen and purify their minds and bodies through everything from meditation to martial arts. We should not allow these traditions to become relics of the past. We should revive them to create schools in which young men and women can strengthen mind and body and discover their true purpose. |