During my childhood, my mother ran a tight household, raising and feeding six children. One day, when I came home from school, she announced loudly:
“Tonight, we’re having tteokguk!”
“Really? Wow!”
Back when rice was scarce, tteokguk was a rare treat like catching a star in the sky. I must have finished three or four bowls without pausing for breath. I can confidently say it was the most delicious tteokguk I had ever tasted. Years later, my mother confessed that it wasn’t made with rice cakes. Wanting to give her children a break from the daily meals of barley and wheat flour, she came up with an idea. She rolled out wheat-flour dough, sliced it thinly, and cooked it in broth to resemble tteokguk. Seeing us eat so heartily brought her to tears—part joy, part sorrow.
Thinking about my mother, whose greatest wish was simply to feed her six children well, I found myself reflecting on Heavenly Mother. The monthly Elohist and the daily uploaded videos are surely the result of Her deep desire to nourish Her children with the richest spiritual food.
These days, in a world of abundance, the real challenge is feeding our children healthier meals. When my growing kids refused nutritious food simply because it didn’t taste good or felt inconvenient, I often found myself frustrated, even angry. But then I paused and asked myself: how different was I? When members at Zion encouraged me to study the Word more diligently, I would often respond with a childish “Again?” Though I failed to grasp Her heart, Heavenly Mother never scolded me. Instead, She continues to labor tirelessly, day after day, to nourish us with the finest spiritual food. With a humbled heart, I bring my hands together and offer a sincere prayer of thanks to our Heavenly Mother.