By Young Lee Hertig

Last Sunday, I arrived in Seoul to make my annual visit to my mom — at least, annually since my father’s passing two years ago. Thankfully, two of my sisters reside in Seoul, which allows me to be the “annual daughter.”

With each passing year, the air quality here is becoming more and more hazardous due to China’s pollution.  The weather in May felt like that of hot summer.  On the first night, I noticed my eyes stung and my throat felt inflamed.  My body seemed to be running on high alert.

Unlike my last visit, this time I am staying with my mom who lives alone. In this new neighborhood, my mom can walk to church and enjoy the park outside her little apartment. As with many elderly, Mom now finds some companionship and solace in her TV, particularly with several Christian cable channels filled with sermons, bible studies, praise music, and even public counseling.   At 4:30 am, I am awakened to the blasting sound of television preachers and nonstop news of all kinds.  The weaker her hearing gets, the louder the TV volume.  One of our intergenerational challenges revolves around control of the TV remote, as Mom doesn’t ever seem to get tired of listening to television preachers!

The other day, I took mom to visit her younger brother and his ailing wife.  It took 30 minutes to walk several blocks to the transportation station as she stopped and rested along the way.   My uncle was also experiencing a weakening of his hearing.  At the table, we gathered for snacks and his daughter was helping her parents to transition to their new cell phones’ speed-dial system.  My uncle brought scotch tape and tried to glue a chart with each contact name numbered from the old phone to the new.  Patiently his daughter showed the screen that displays the speed dial options but Uncle preferred the paper chart to the digital display!

Every morning, in her new neighborhood, my mother sits on her favorite bench and prays for everyone her heart takes to.   Church members give Mom their prayer requests and her habit of praying for others sustains her sense of mission and purpose.  I am thankful for the church that provides my mom a spiritual community within walking distance.

I have taken my prayer-warrior mom for granted all my life but not anymore.  Notably her shoulders are now a little more bent and her hearing more limited than they were on my previous visit.  Indeed, it is a privilege to be with Mom who can still function in her daily routine — walking. though slow, and cooking homemade dumplings with her mind still alert.   She takes joy in harvesting the organic produce she plants in her little front yard.  Eating her signature dish of dumplings which she prepared from scratch brought memories of table fellowship of long ago.

Living with Mom day-to-day means dealing with nonstop television preaching.  But in the end, I feel privileged to be able to see Mom and receive her prayers.

Rev. Dr. Young Lee Hertig is executive director and a founding member of ISAAC (Institute for the Study of Asian American Christianity) and AAWOL (Asian American Women On Leadership). She teaches in the Global Studies and Sociology Department at Azusa Pacific University and is an ordained Presbyterian clergy as well as a commissioner of the Presbyterian Church USA to the National Council of Churches Faith and Order.