Superman Dr. Lee's Testimony

About two weeks ago, I found someone familiar face on a big, rectangular advertisement attached to the shop door as I walked by. I took a few more steps in backward then stopped at the door to read what it said. "The miracle in me" was written above the picture of a man who sat in a doctor's white gown in a wheelchair. 

In the last winter break, I was reading about his story through online articles.
He is known as Superman Dr. Lee, who is now working at the department of rehabilitation in Johns Hopkins University.
How did I hear about him?
At first, I heard about the Korean popular drama called, Dr. Champ (Champion's abbreviated word, I guess..), even though I've never watch that.
Later, I heard that the main charactor of the actual model was known as Dr. Lee Seung bok.


What kind of a person is he.. to overcome all those odds he had faced? 
I was wondering about this person, who was encouraging people to never give up.


When I read his articles, I had never thought that I could meet him in person.
The poster informed me that Dr. Lee will be delivering his religious testimony in one of the Korean churches.
So I was definitely excited.. to go there.


Last Saturday was that day.
By the time the darkness fell, in the foggy parking garage, I stopped walking when I approached the front door of the church, where my friend was standing by in a black military-look suit, her hands jammed in her pocket.


Friend- Hey, do you have 10 dollar?
Me- (My hand shoveling my bag) No.
Friend- The entrance fee is 10 dollar.
Me- (Taking my wallet out of my bag and there was only five of 1 dollars, what's left after I paid my food at Texas restaurant. I showed that to her.) 10 dollar? I didn't know there was an entrance fee. I have a credit card, though. Do they accept a credit card? 
Friend-  (Taking my 5 dollars) I'll pay for you the rest.. You treated me the lunch last time.
Me- Aw.. Thank...


My friend and I stepped into inside where was like a chapel and where the music coming from. The room was already filled with many Korean older people - now the audience, watching traditional music performance in the rows of long, light brown chairs.


After the performance, Dr. Lee rose the stage with the help of two men, lifting his wheelchair on his left and right.
His mic attached- silvery white laptop in front of him and power point slides above him were proving to be his exhaustive preparedness for the testimony.  
His life story and testimony were started to unfold in Korean.

 He was born in 1965 and his family moved to the States in 1973 when he was 8-years-old.
When he came to the States, his immigration life was a lot different, tougher and harder than he'd ever imagined before. His father was a cleaner, who had worked for more than half a day and so did his mother. 


Dr. Lee had no time, no chance to see his parents.. and he thought the immigration life had stolen the togetherness and happiness his family used to share in Korea.
He also said he hated the fact that people in America didn't know about the country of Korea. They'd only ask if he was a Chinese or Japanese, not even knew where the Korea was located on the globe.


He said he felt a lot of emptiness in immigration life that he desperately needed some kind of a goal that he could devote his life into.
When he saw the little Romanian Olympic gymnastic gold medalist on TV in 1976, he got such an aspiration that he would be successful in gymnastic, too and let the world know about Korea and who he is. 


He took that road of becoming an Olympic gold medalist despite of his parental oppositions.


By the year of '83, he turned out to be a professional gymnast, who had a very promising future ahead of him. 
One day, he was practicing the summersault really hard. As he was landing on the floor, he thought like, 'yes, I did it this time. I turned it wonderfully!' But instead of his feet landing, his chin hit the floor.


When it happened, he said that he thought someone was showing him the pictures of his life's highlight moments right in front of him.
He was sent to the hospital where his parents came in, his father said, "You haven't listen to our words and what is this terrible thing happened to you!!"


Hearing his father's words, he felt like a jerk, he told us.
All he wanted to do was.. letting people know about the country he's from and most of all.. he wanted to be loved by his parents and imagined his family happily living after when becoming a gold medalist.


He was told that he could never walk again.
He cried.. alone in the dark room.


'Why me? Why this hardship? I was a good person, good brother and son! I wanted to achieve my dream and become a great person!  I was so close to realize that dream! Why did you send me to somewhere that's a halfway back on the earth and let this happened to me?" He asked God.


He was more sad with the fact that that his dream of becoming an Olympic gold medalist could never be realized anymore than the fact that he is paralyzed for life.


But.. as he had gone through the rehabilitation training, he gained a challenging spirit, surprisingly.
Then he had decided to switch his life direction gear from sports to study.


He enrolled in NYU. One day in the campus, Dr. Lee had a conversation with the stranger for three hours. 
His name was Larry, a missionary, who explained to him about Christianity so well enough for Dr. Lee to accept and to be convinced that there's God, eternity.. and joy, happiness, tranquility filled life in spite of his physical condition.
He asked Larry, "Then how can I become a Christian? Do I have to be good to become a Christian?"
Larry's reply was simple.. A lot simpler than what he could have expected. 
"You just have to believe.. that God is our Christ and savior. Only that.. belief."


He felt like he was freed.. from thousands of needles pressing his back..
Finally, he could open up his mind.


Before, he wanted to plan everything by himself and he wanted to be recognized in order to let people know his identity and presence.. Because of that, he was a sinner, he said.
He realized.. that no gold modal to fill his emptiness was needed anymore.
He said God finally and perfectly made him to see His master plan, which is spreading the gospel. 
I could hear people saying 'Amen' in places as Dr. Lee said this.


Dr. Lee- All I needed to do was... moving forward to God with a truthful belief.
We have a right to be loved.
Love your God, love your family and siblings and neighbors.
Be determined to have your dream and courage.
And have a CAN-DO mind in God. The miracle is in God and hope is the ones' whose dreaming.
And that's what the true champion is like. 




The powerpoint slides showed us the pictures of his life moments along with the words.
I was espeically overwhelmed at the part where it said,
He was able to get into Dartmouth med school 10 years after he dreamed a new dream. 


You don't become a doctor by getting into a med school, it's just one-step-closer process. But to draw him nearer to his dream, it took him a decade.. just to get into a med school. and 10 years is not a short time, obviously. And in general, a lot of people can't even get into a med school, no matter how long it takes or how many times they attempt it. And his starting point wasn't even same as others. 


When that sentence popped on the screen, suddenly, I tried to imagine what he must had gone through all those years.. him.. wrestling with sitting on his desk for long hours with the physical condition he has, wrestling with temptations and spirituality and mentality and patience and the clock in his room ticking by every battling moment in his life. 


Of course.. I was not even close to imagine the scenes where his hardships were involved by every moment, because no one could ever understand what other people are going through in their lives. Ever! He must have settled himself down to study when his mind was wobbling.
How hard that must had been.. how disciplined and determined he must have been.
I couldn't think of anything except just thinking to myself, 'wow.. human-victory..'.
But more surprising thing was that.. he ascribed his accomplishments to God.
He said what he did was all what God did.. for him.


The testimony was very inspirational and was soulful and merciful moment, like a creamed cheese, spinach, tiny sliced crispy bacon stuffed all inside one mushroom. It was like a very truthful, thankful life advice you've ever wanted to hear solely for your own good or your pursuit of a better, fulfilled life. The most awesome thing was that he shared his story with others to encourage.  I thought and still think that he is a true champion.


After his testimony, people circled around him in the doorway, in an anticipation of taking a picture and getting an autograph from him.


I got on one of the tentative lines, having the same exact anticipation that other people had.
As I waited, my mind started to race.. for absolutely no reason!
'What am I or what do I have to say to him? It is.. pleasure to meet you..? or it was a great testimony..? Wait, do I even have such an authority to say or compliment him like that? By the way, should I say in English or Korean? Since he's Korean. Oh wait, he was grown up here for most of his life. But he did say Korean today in testimony.'


In the middle of all those unnecessary thoughts were compling on my brain, suddenly I met his gaze. His gaze over the shoulder of the person in front of me, holding the camera with his back slightly bent, because of his picture taking.
The group of youth boys, who got Dr. Lee's autograph, went away with their fast and frantic footsteps and my turn came.
I approached Dr. Lee, thinking 'uh-oh, I still don't know what to say to him.'


He greeted me first, said 'hello' in Korean, so I did too.
I told him, 'I read your articles over the last winter and they were very inspirational' in Korean.
It was not the words I prepared, but that was exactly how I got to know him..

 No time to talk anymore other than a picture time, because there was a line of people behind me. 
My friend was taking a picture of Dr. Lee and myself. I didn't know how Dr. Lee was posing, but I looked at the camera and grabbed the smile like a prize, because meeting him and listening to his testimony that night was really meaningful to me. 

 I heard his testimony, but still, I don't really know how he became a champion.
However, one thing I am so sure.
I was so much encouraged by his story and words, so I'm very grateful for that.