π INTRODUCTION
Loneliness is not always caused by being alone.
Sometimes it follows us even when we are surrounded by people, family, and meaningful work.
For those living abroad, loneliness can feel even deeper.
Questions about identity, belonging, purpose, and the future often arise unexpectedly.
This meditation testimonial shares the story of Yong-Hee C., a Korean language instructor at the Korean Cultural Center in France, who spent years struggling with loneliness, anxiety, insomnia, and questions about who she truly was.
Although she appeared successful on the outside, she often felt disconnected, uncertain, and emotionally isolated.
Through the meditation method taught by Master Woo Myung, she gradually learned how to let go of fear, loneliness, and the emotional burdens she had accumulated throughout her life.
In doing so, she discovered a deeper sense of belonging, gratitude, and happiness that no longer depended on where she lived or what circumstances surrounded her.
This meditation testimonial beautifully illustrates how inner peace begins when we discover who we truly are.
π¬ MEDITATION TESTIMONIAL: βWHO AM I?β β FINDING HAPPINESS BEYOND LONELINESS AND FEAR
By Yong-Hee C. | Korean Language Instructor at the Korean Cultural Center in France
For more than ten years, I have taught Korean language classes at the Korean Cultural Center in France.
My students often describe me as warm, caring, and approachable.
Some even tell me I remind them of their mother.
In recent years, interest in Korea has grown tremendously throughout France.
Many students travel long distances just to attend class.
Some drive five hours and never miss a lesson.
One day, during a semester-ending celebration, beginner students surprised me by singing “Teacher’s Grace” entirely in Korean while wearing matching outfits.
I was deeply moved.
Today, teaching brings me great joy.
But life was not always this way.
π§οΈ LIVING ABROAD WAS MUCH HARDER THAN I EXPECTED
After studying French literature in Korea, I moved to France for graduate school.
My university was located in Clermont-Ferrand, a quiet city where very few Koreans lived.
At first, the loneliness felt overwhelming.
β’ I barely knew how to cook
β’ My French was limited
β’ Classes were difficult to understand
β’ Weekends felt painfully empty
When French students returned home to their families on weekends, I often remained alone in the dormitory.
Sometimes, opening my room door felt as though even the air inside was pushing me away.
The loneliness was difficult to describe.
π EVEN AFTER RETURNING TO KOREA, I STILL FELT ALONE
After six years of studying abroad, I returned to Korea.
I expected the loneliness to disappear.
Surprisingly, it didn’t.
I realized that very few people around me truly understood the life I had experienced overseas.
Later, I married a longtime friend and moved back to France.
But new challenges appeared.
For nearly six years, my husband and I had to live apart because of work.
At the same time, I was raising three children in a foreign country while facing financial difficulties.
I struggled with severe anxiety and insomnia.
Because of visa restrictions, I could not even work initially.
Although I kept moving forward, internally I felt lost.
π€ βWHO AM I?β
In 2004, I encountered meditation.
One question immediately struck me:
“Who am I?”
That question touched me deeply.
After living abroad for so many years, I often wondered:
“Am I Korean?”
“Is France now my home?”
“Where do I truly belong?”
As I reflected upon my life and gradually let go of accumulated emotional burdens, something suddenly became clear.
One day, I realized:
“The universe itself was me.”
At that moment, it felt as though I had received an incredible gift.
The answer I had been searching for all along was already there.
πΏ I REALIZED NOTHING WAS ACTUALLY WRONG
As I continued letting go of fear, anxiety, and emotional burdens, I discovered something surprising.
Objectively, my life had never truly been falling apart.
My children were healthy.
I had meaningful work.
I always had food to eat.
Life itself had continued supporting me.
Yet internally, I had remained trapped inside anxiety and loneliness created by my own mind.
I realized something important:
“I had never truly been living in the present moment.”
That realization changed everything.
β¨ IT FELT LIKE OPENING MY EYES FOR THE FIRST TIME
As many fears and attachments disappeared, the world suddenly looked different.
Flowers looked beautiful.
People walking calmly through the streets looked beautiful.
Simply being alive felt miraculous.
I found myself saying:
“Thank you.”
Again and again.
Perhaps the biggest change was that the psychological boundaries I carried began disappearing.
The distance between:
β’ Korea and France
β’ Koreans and French people
β’ Here and there
gradually dissolved.
Now, wherever I am, I feel at home.
β€οΈ HAPPINESS DOESN’T COME FROM TRYING HARDER
Previously, even while reading the Bible, I often felt frustrated.
I admired teachings about peace, love, and humility.
Yet I could never seem to live that way consistently.
Through meditation, I eventually realized:
“It wasn’t about trying harder.”
“It was about letting go.”
One verse especially took on new meaning for me:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit…”
Today, I understand those words differently.
True peace comes when the mind becomes empty, humble, and free from attachment.
Only then can genuine happiness naturally appear.
πΈ I WANT TO SHARE THIS HAPPINESS WITH OTHERS
One of the things I appreciated most about meditation was that it felt like someone patiently walking beside me.
Not forcing.
Not judging.
Simply guiding.
Step by step.
Because of that experience, I hope more people can discover the same happiness and freedom.
Especially those struggling with:
β’ Loneliness
β’ Anxiety
β’ Identity confusion
β’ Fear about the future
Because I have learned something important:
“The happiness we search for was never far away.”
It was simply hidden beneath the worries, fears, and thoughts we carried within ourselves.
