Rest from Our Burdens
For only a few exceptions, we all have to work. We work to earn a living so that our family would have food, clothing, and shelter. We work to utilize our God-given gifts and talents to live out our life’s purpose. For Chinese Americans, we also work out of our sense duty and responsibility as fathers and mothers. We learned from the very beginning of life that to be a “good” Chinese, we must work long and hard often at the expense of oneself, for the livelihood and comfort of our families.
Mrs. Fung Soon Lee started working at a very young age caring for her younger sisters and brothers while still performing her share of housework in Jiangmen City in Guangdong. She worked so diligently that other people liked to work side by side with her. Because of her industry, she made their work easier.
In the Bible, Jesus Christ said,
“Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens,
and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me;
for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30)
In our modern world, we don’t make much use of yokes anymore. Basically a yoke is a long piece of curved wood used to harness two farm animals together. The two animals would pull together to plow a field. The yoke allowed the farmer to harness the strength of both animals at the same time to more easily accomplish the task. Mrs. Lee was willing to help others out. In doing so, she made their jobs easier. It was like, she was yoked with them and the burden was made lighter.
When Mrs. Lee came to America, where opportunities to succeed and get ahead were depended on how hard one is willing to work, she became a seamstress merely making pennies for each garment piece sewn. After saving enough to become business owners, Mrs. Lee and her husband purchased a dry cleaning shop in the Richmond District where she once again gave tirelessly for 22 years to provide for her family. Through her hard work, she modeled for her sons the value of an honest day’s work. Dan learned how to fold clothes by watching his mother.
Jesus used the image of the yoke to refer to his own life purpose and vision. By yoking up with Jesus, by accepting his burdens as our own, we will find that in spite of our own burdens, we would find rest. The word, “rest” does not mean how we might define “rest” today. It’s not sitting in front of the TV and watching a basketball game. Rest really means being “fulfilled” and “satisfied.” When we take Jesus’ yoke, the weight of our own life will give way to a sense of fulfillment that your life really counts for something. The things you do and face will not tire you out, but energize you to do even more.
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Mrs. Lee seemed to understand this. She was never afraid of yoking up with others in order to lighten their burdens. She worked hard to become a US citizen so that she can sponsor her sisters and brothers to America. I can imagine how she might have spent time helping them get settled in their new homes. Out of her faithful duty, Mrs. Lee took the burdens of her loved ones and helped them to see that their dreams can come true too.
For the past three years when her health deteriorated and her disease took a painful and difficult course, she had a peaceful determination of someone who knew who she was and what she was about. Her son, Dan took time to care for her as she once cared for him. She was proud of what each of her sons became. The “rest” that Jesus was speaking about was the “rest” that Mrs. Lee found. She discovered an inner sense of peace that comes from knowing what life is all about.
I was told that Mrs. Lee enjoyed gardening. She planted flowers and enjoyed their beauty. St. Francis of Assisi was hoeing his garden when someone asked what he would do if he were suddenly to learn that he would die before sunset that very day. He said, “I would finish hoeing my garden.” Out of a deep sense of duty for her family and her faithfulness to do what was expected of her, Mrs. Fung Soon Lee finished hoeing her garden.
Today, we remember and celebrate how Mrs. Lee, unafraid of hard work with a willingness to yoke her strength with others in order to make their burdens lighter can now find rest for her soul. Let us go from this place with the commitment to help others with their burdens as a living memorial for the life of Mrs. Fung Soon Lee.