A church member who had recently joined stopped coming after just a few weeks, so I decided to pay her a short visit at the dry cleaners she runs. From the outside, the shop looked old and shabby. But as I opened the door and stepped in, I was surprised to hear a beautiful, sorrowful aria playing softly through a cassette tape.

The church member looked exhausted and weary, yet she greeted me with a bright smile. Inside the shop, a broken-down washing machine—clearly out of order for decades—stood in stark contrast to the freshly cleaned and neatly packaged clothes hanging, waiting for their owners.

As we chatted, exchanging updates about our lives, she began to speak of her only daughter. Her daughter had just started college and was a remarkably gifted singer with a promising future. From a young age, she had won competitions and stood out in various music events. Despite her youth, she displayed a natural vocal talent and took great care of her voice, constantly striving to develop it further.

But the mother was deeply troubled. She didn’t have the financial means to nurture her daughter’s talent fully, and with her aging body, she felt helpless and empty.

Having saved all her life, she believed dry cleaning was one of the few businesses accessible to immigrants, so before opening her shop, she had learned how to sew in someone else’s home. Eventually, she bought a store from a Jewish owner for a high price in a prime location. The business went okay for a few years, but as time passed, things declined.

On top of that, the machines began breaking down, and she couldn’t afford to replace them. In the end, she became what’s known as a “drop shop,” sending out clothes to be cleaned elsewhere. Her employees eventually left on their own. The idea that hard work would always pay off had become just a nostalgic tale. Life grew harder, and the light of hope for the future grew dimmer. Still, she found joy and meaning through her daughter.

She would listen to her daughter’s recorded voice dozens of times a day, dreaming of the day her child would become a prima donna at the Metropolitan Opera—world-renowned, radiant on stage. That dream was her only comfort and hope.

As I listened to her share pieces like Puccini’s songs and selections from Miss Saigon, I was deeply moved. The sound of her daughter’s voice was filled with pure, soaring dreams and a desperate longing for the future. In that cold, shabby shop—with peeling paint hanging from the ceiling, looking ready to fall, and a chill creeping between the cleaned clothes—her daughter’s voice trembled with the energy of a standing ovation ready to burst forth.

“Do you want your daughter to become a world-famous soprano?” I asked.
“Of course! But I’m not sure… Will it really work out?”
“Do you really want it?” I asked again.
“Yes… I really do,” she said with a deep sigh.

“There is a way. How much money do you think you can really make here at the dry cleaners? Supporting your daughter matters, but your resources are limited. In Proverbs 16:1–3, it says:
‘To humans belong the plans of the heart, but from the Lord comes the proper answer of the tongue.
All a person’s ways seem pure to them, but motives are weighed by the Lord.
Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and he will establish your plans.’

Start praying today! Invite God to be your partner. A mother’s tearful prayers can move the heart of God, and God can move the hearts of people to open doors for your daughter.”

Her eyes began to brighten.
“Do you really think inviting God as my partner will help?”
“Absolutely! Faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1). No matter how hard or busy life gets, you must stay strengthened and comforted by God’s Word. That’s how you’ll maintain a healthy body and spirit, so that one day, when your daughter becomes a world-class soprano, you’ll still be around to watch her shine.

But if you remain in despair, worrying alone, it may not help her dream come true. God might want to use your daughter not only for the Metropolitan Opera but across generations to come.”

As I turned to leave, she grasped my hand tightly and smiled warmly. The burdens and worries that had pressed her down seemed to lift, as if wings were unfolding to set her free.

On the way home, I reflected on the nature of human dreams. Everyone, in their own way, dreams of being a prima donna. God wants to place each of us center stage in the theater of our lives.

Yet we often stray far from His will.
As created beings, we try to live by our own strength, ignoring our Creator.
But God, in His love, still longs to help us, to go before us, and to open paths for us.

Many believers before us lived as true prima donnas in life, not because they were admired by the world, but because they lived boldly with a faith that transcended time and circumstance. They may have looked like losers in their day, unnoticed by the world, but the persecution and suffering they endured made them radiant in eternity.

Dreams and fame pursued apart from the Lord may, in the end, be like the broken machines in an abandoned laundry—destined to rust and fade.
But those who walk hand in hand with the Creator may stumble, yet they will rise again. They may be unknown, but they will one day be known.

wanheeyoon@hotmail.com