An Eternal Impact
How we live and what we prioritize today will affect not only our own future but also that of others in ways we would never have expected.
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It’s the final week of 2023. Usually, this is when we take inventory of the year passed and make plans for the new year with new year resolutions, such as eating healthier, exercising more, and being happier.
Since change usually requires motivation, I decided to close 2023 and welcome 2024 by recommending a show that has inspired me lately.
Over the Christmas break, I watched a South Korean drama, “Move to Heaven,” streaming through Netflix. The show was released two years ago, in 2021, and received excellent reviews. But for two years, I’d resisted watching it because I was told the show was about death and trauma, and I was afraid that I wasn’t mentally and emotionally prepared to watch it.
I finally decided to watch it this Christmas, partly because Netflix’s algorithm kept recommending it and partly because the show has only ten episodes. Hence, it’s perfect to binge without too much time commitment.
I promise you that “Move to Heaven” is not dark and depressing. I won’t spoil it for you. But it is essential to explain the basic plot. The show begins with Han Jeong-u and his son, Han Geu-ru, a young man with Asperger’s syndrome. Geu-ru has impressive memories and can recall minor details. He’s also socially awkward, prefers everything to stay the same, and is easily disturbed by even the slightest variation from his set routines and familiar surroundings.
The father-son team runs a trauma cleaning service called “Move to Heaven.” Their job is to clean the room after someone died alone and isolated, either having no family or their family being unwilling to touch stuff left by the deceased (some South Koreans believe doing so will bring bad luck).
Han taught Geu-ru that their role is to help the deceased complete their final move before the soul rises to heaven. Therefore, regardless of the circumstances of how the person died, Han and his son always perform their job respectfully toward the dead. During the cleaning process, Han also coached Geu-ru on how to find clues from the deceased’s belongings and piece together a person’s life story, motivations, and unfulfilled wishes.
They packed the essential possessions representing a life lived and wishes unfulfilled in a yellow box and handed the box to the person the deceased cared about the most. This final task wasn’t always easy. Sometimes, it took time to find out who should receive the box (not always the next kin). Other times, the family members didn’t want to take the box due to a range of emotions resulting from past grievances against the deceased: anger, disappointment, misunderstanding, resentment, and more.
Han was an understanding teacher and an anchor in life for his son, but he passed away due to a heart attack at the end of the first episode. Before he died, Han appointed his half-brother, Sang-gu, who had just been released from prison, as Geu-ru’s legal guardian. It was a shocking choice because Sang-gu clearly made some terrible choices in life and suffered consequences for them. He walked around with a chip on his shoulder, and the demon from his past continued to follow him like his shadow.
The lawyer who handled Han’s will asked Sang-gu to enter a three-month probationary period as Geu-ru’s guardian. Sang-gu would live with Geu-ru and become a new employee of “Move to Heaven.” Neither Sang-gu nor Geu-ru was enthusiastic about this arrangement. Sang-gu had deep grudges against his older brother, and the last thing he wanted to do was take care of a nephew with special needs and do trauma cleaning for a living.
Geu-ru only knew he had an uncle after his father passed away. For someone with Asperger’s syndrome, Geu-ru didn’t deal with change very well, and he grieved for the loss of his father. Despite all his experiences in trauma cleaning, Geu-ru refused to clean Han’s room. He continued to make breakfast for Han and set Han’s place at the table while forbidding his uncle Sang-gu to touch Han’s things, sit in Han’s chair, or sleep in Han’s room.
For the rest of the nine episodes, uncle and nephew tried to work and live together and make painful adjustments to a new reality none of them had a choice. Fortunately, there was a lovely girl living next door with a big heart who often showed up to help both the uncle and the nephew ease the transition.
Besides the main storyline about Geu-ru and Sang-gu, each episode of the show tells the life story of a unique individual. These characters came from diverse backgrounds and lived very different lives. Unfortunately, their lives were cut short while they were busy planning for the future, from falling in love to escaping a bad situation to looking for a long-lost loved one.
Thankfully, Geu-ru was able to piece together each person’s life and understand what they had hoped to accomplish or express by searching for clues from the things they left behind, whether an unopened gift box or a note with a phone number. Due to Geu-ru’s attention to detail and persistent effort (later with his uncle’s assistance), every seemingly heartbreaking life story ultimately had a heartwarming ending.
Of course, it is often true that when you aid others, you end up benefiting the most in the end. That is certainly the case for Geu-ru and Sang-gu. They eventually learned to adopt each other into their lives and became better versions of themselves.
The show is more about life than death, forgiveness than resentment, and rescue than abandonment. The final reveal of a secret about Geu-ru’s life was beautiful and powerful. The plot is a good blend of blood, sweat, laughter, and tears. I cried and laughed while watching it.
I recommend “Move to Heaven” because, as we plan for a new year and seek motivation and inspiration, the show reminds us that the best time to do what is important is always now, not tomorrow. I heard a quote from a podcast: “What you choose to do today will have an eternal impact.” It may sound like an exaggeration. Still, I believe how we live and prioritize today will affect not only our future but also that of others in ways we would never have expected.
Furthermore, the best way to let someone know how much you care about them is to be generous with your time today: sit with them, ask questions, and listen. Everyone has a story to tell, and we all need someone to listen. Life goes on when one person’s story lives in the hearts of someone they loved and who loved them back.