Tonight I had the distinct pleasure of heading over to Pruis Hall to listen to Laura Ling speak about what attributes and experiences helped her cope with being imprisoned in North Korea.
If you didn't already know, or just don't remember, Laura Ling and Euna Lee were reporters that were imprisoned by North Korea as they worked on a story along the Chinese, North Korean border. At one point, they followed their Chinese guide across the frozen river that divides the two nations, and they were quickly chased by North Korean guards. Although they made it back to the Chinese side of the river, they were caught by the guards and drug back to North Korea. There, they spent 140 days until former president, Bill Clinton, was able to negotiate their release. Had he not done so, they would have faced 12 years of forced labor, a very harsh punishment by anyone's standards.
Ling didn't only speak of her experiences with the North Koreans. She also talked about her other works which include reporting on slavery in the Amazon River valley and her experience reporting on Mexican drug cartels.
Laura Ling has no doubt had enough experiences as a reporter to last her a lifetime, but her message wasn't one of boasting about here own experiences. She made it a point to focus on reminding the audience that life is hard. There are times that you'll feel defeated with no way out. She said that at those times, you have to look within yourself for hope and encouragement. Enjoy the little things. That was my biggest take-away message. Life can be rough, but if you remember to be thankful for the little things in life, you'll find the hope and will to continue. After all, as she pointed out, we live in one of the free-est nations in the world, and others would do anything to get the kind of freedom we experience on a daily basis, and that includes sacrificing their own lives for the hope that their friends and families will live in a better world.
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