(i apologize for this photo, but it is literally the only photo i have of just the two of us.)
youlsoo has been my mentor for the last two years, and i can say with confidence that she has changed my life. she's a mom and a wife, a proud ucd agricultural economics (idk what this is) graduate, and a woman who is quick to share about her shortcomings and flaws, but even quicker to acknowledge God's faithfulness and grace in her life.
she openly shares with me about her struggle with her broken family and the broken relationships with her parents, the woes of marriage, the hardships she faced while trying to start a family, the struggles of motherhood, the difficulties in facing death of a loved one, and her daily battle to trust God fully.
youlsoo is in her mid 40s and could very easily be my mom (age wise), and i think that this was truly god's intention. in the past two years she's celebrated with me in times of joy, she's consoled me in times of distress, and she's grieved with me in times of darkness. god really opened my eyes to what it means to love in a paternal way through both her and her husband bob.
i had dinner with her today, and it's so funny to be able to reflect back on all that has happened in the last twenty some odd months of life. what were hardships and trials in hindsight look like blessing and divine provisions from above. the circumstances and relationships have come and gone and changed with the seasons, but his faithfulness has remained constant.
this woman has deeply enriched my life and my personal relationship with christ. to know that she's so transparent with me in her triumphs and her hiccups encourages me more than i could ever express. she's firm with me, but always compassionate. she challenges me, but supports me. she pushes me, but she prays for me.
fun fact: she has two of the most adorable children known to man. jordan (named after the jordan river, because biblically speaking, the jordan river had to be crossed in order to reach the promise land) and haylee (because bob liked paramore). these two children (who could very easily double as gap models) have taught me so much about the grace of god.
jordan's going to be such a heartbreaker. he's so 잘생겼어..
haylee is a princess, better than elsa and anna combined.
also, their dad, bob is an amazing photographer/has a lot of time on his hands despite being a crazy engineer:
i got them these shirts last year and they were so proud to show me :)
