Book Review - The Girl with Seven Names
My gratitude to Lee Hyeon-seo for the courage to endure, and for sharing her story with the world.
This is not a summary or overview of the story, but an attempt at describing the thoughts and emotions that it provoked.
Such a descriptive and captivating history of events that I nearly listened to the entire book straight through without pausing. It is insightfully horrific to hear in such detail, the conditions of oppression that is brought upon people in North Korea, and of the psychological condition that allows it to propagate among neighbors, associates and throughout generations. The psychology that could even cause a defector to desire to return after experiencing the stark realities of freedom and human rights is difficult to understand, but the account of this family has brought me to a more humble understanding of the fragile yet enduring nature of our existence.
Most of us have an innate capacity to survive and to thrive under any circumstances, it is a trait of humanity. This desire to thrive can drive us to extremes in both thought and deed, extremes in acts committed, observed and accepted. In an environment where extortion, bribery, murder, starvation, and human trafficking are accepted as routine, and in fact were part of the foundation of the society, it can shape such a distorted world-view that the citizens are unable to comprehend the existence of basic human rights. And even within a state of such suffering there are families who love, individuals who are compassionate, selfless and contrite. Families gather for meals, teach their children to respect their elders, and plan for the future. There are families and friends whose love stretches across impassible borders, countries, and seas. Families and children who long for the place of their birth, the memories of friends, their homes and their land.
The suffering is real, but it is man-made and as such it can end. People create conditions of oppression in search of the power to survive, pride rules their hearts, but it does not have to. Such a state does not have to exist, in North Korea, or even neighborhoods in America. We create them, we can change them. The great question is, how? How could such pride and cruelty disappear? How can we replace extortion with charity, bribery with compassion, murder with life, starvation with abundance, trafficking with free commerce?
A defector might look as the perilous conditions that can exist in a free market; much of the same things they sought to leave behind but disguised in a shroud of individualism. They may look and wonder, is it so much better there? Of course we know it is because we have, at least the rights, to make it so. Exercise of religion, thought, speech and properly are so basic to us that they are taken for granted, we forget the struggles that established them for us. A free society may become complacent and begin to create problems where there are none, develop concerns over trivial issues that would otherwise be dismissed as fantasy, (I’m looking at you Portland).
To unify these two worlds, the free one and the oppressed one - the free one must first establish itself in truth and righteousness. Creating a society that can be desired and earnestly sought after by all. Not because of their riches, but because of their peace and opportunity. It must be a society that speaks louder about love as the other does about fear. The fact that some in our free society can no longer distinguish truth and righteousness from lies and evil or claim that such fixed standards do not exits, is the primary contributing factor to its decline. How can you argue with someone who sees the sun but claims it is not there?
I believe unification is possible, but not through force or coercion. It is only possible through love and compassion. A prideful leader who is challenged will only retreat to reinforce their position. I wish there was a way for me to directly express my love to the people of North Korea. I don’t need to know them personally to love them, it is enough for me to know that they are also children of God. A God who is aware of their suffering, who hears their supplications to their ancestors for help. I have hope that the power of God will one day be manifest to them in a way that begins the process of unification. In a way that allows many to experience God’s power and grace.
What can I do? This is a question that often arises when we learn of suffering. Give my money to an organization? Write this message? Pray? Having done these, is there more? There is more, if only to repeat what I have done over until change is realized.
Stories like this are important to share, and hear. They expand our perspective of the world, hopefully they humble us and bring us closer together. I would absolutely encourage anyone to read or listen.
