Chambumo Gyeong - 033. Training in self-sufficiency
In his childhood, True Father experienced all the tasks of farming, including plowing rice paddies, plowing fields, planting rice and weeding rice. He learned through experience the secrets for successfully growing rice, beans, corn, sweet potatoes and other crops. He did not mind spreading manure and raking leaves. He eagerly took part in every kind of work and learned to do the best job he could in whatever he was doing. He also learned how to mend his clothes and knit his own socks, hats and gloves. In this way, he trained himself to live alone, without needing to depend on others. 11 As soon as I came back from school, I would take off my school shirt and jump into farm work. I was always on the job ahead of my siblings, even my older brother and older sisters. I thought, "Unless I earn the title of champion farmer, I cannot become the leader of the farmers' world." So I taught myself how to become the best farmer. I became an expert on where to plant regular beans and where to plant red beans. I learned how to tell what crop would be best for the soil by looking at the ground. Without hesitation I would say, "Sweet potatoes should flourish here. Why did you plant something else?" Others responded, "How do you know that?" I learned it all through experience. Hence, when I go to a rural community, I am a farmer s farmer. It is the same when I go to a fishing village. I invented an unsinkable boat, and I developed a unique and effective system for catching tuna. (220-333, 1991/10/20) 12 1 knitted my own socks and made my own clothes. When the weather got cold, I made a hat and wore it. I am the one who taught knitting to my older sisters. In order to fulfill your mission for the Will, you must train yourself to be self-sufficient. When I needed underwear, I got a roll of cloth, cut it to a pattern and made some. When I put them on, they fit perfectly. I even made Korean socks for my mother. She said, "I thought you were making them for fun, but they fit me so well!" You should be able to do all these kinds of things based on your own study. You should know how to make your own clothes, socks and hats. If you can do that, even if you live alone you will be able to accomplish your responsibility for the Will. (222-271, 1991/11/03) 13 These days, there is one kind of food that I miss. I have tried all the famous dishes in the world. Is there a food anywhere that I have not tasted? Yet, I still miss this one food. In the olden days in the countryside, farmers had to pass through a period called the "May potato challenge." Having used up all our grains through the winter, in the month of May we had only potatoes to eat. Then finally the spring barley harvest arrived, after which we had barley to cook and eat. The barley that I am talking about is not the pearl barley that you buy at the store, but uncracked barley. The grains have to be soaked in water for some time before cooking them. When we put them in our bowls, if we pressed them down firmly with a spoon, individual grains would break loose and fly out of the bowl. I remember eating it mixed with Korean hot pepper paste. This is the dish that I miss even now. It is not tasty if you mix it with anything else; it must be hot pepper paste. Whenever I put a spoonful of that reddish barley into my mouth, the grains would constantly come out through my teeth. I closed my lips tightly in order to eat it. I had to take time because it was so difficult to chew. I miss those olden days. (212-180, 1991/01/06) 14 Living in the country, you can have a lot of fun and many wonderful experiences. That is where I learned everything I needed and collected all the necessary information to prepare myself to build the monumental house of God's Will for the future. The many experiences I had doing things in nature were how I taught myself to be an expert in whatever I did. When I go to a rural area I can become a farmer, and when I go to the sea I can become a fisherman. When I went out net fishing, I left home early in the morning and totally invested myself with the conviction that I would set a new record. I went out with the cry of the rooster at the crack of dawn and did not return home from my labors until the stars came out. All my life, my personal motto has always been to do my very best to set a new world record. That is why wherever I go, whatever I do, I think that I will never be defeated by anyone. And actually, I am never defeated. I also keep this standard when it comes to making conditions of devotion. (050-303, 1971/11/08) |