Embarrasing Moments with True Parents
The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification.
By Nicholas Buscovich
I was a part of East Garden security from July of 1976 to January of 1978. Eighteen months of many experiences with True Parents and the Family. I saw behind the curtain how True Parents lived their daily lives, what made them “tick”, their dedication to God’s Providence and their love for all our members. I was given this mission because of my ancestors. However, I realized that I was not there for myself, but instead to represent all brothers and sisters and to share with them what I experienced with True Parents and their family.
When being with True Parents, we always want to put our best foot forward but in life we know that is not how things unfold. True Parents are real people who deal with real issues that we have also gone through. Here are some unique experiences I had with the True Parents.
First Time to Fish with Father in Glouster
During my short time at East Garden (EG) when summer came, Father and Mother went to Gloucester, MA to fish. In the summer of 1997, the maintenance team and security teams were working on EG roads all summer. It was grueling work and we didn’t have unionized breaks. At the end of the summer, Parents asked all the young children to come to Gloucester and they needed someone to drive them. I was one of those brothers asked to drive. For some reason, we left on a Saturday night and arrived in Gloucester around 4 am Sunday just as Pledge was finishing. It was a long drive and the drivers were very tired and I was looking forward to getting some sleep.
After the pledge, Mother announced that the children had arrived and they were going to get some sleep. However, the security drivers were going fishing and Mother assigned me to Father's boat (Sea Hope) with Kensaku (another driver). Well, I guessed I would sleep on the boat!!!
It was still dark as we got on the boats and Kensaku and I went down to the bow of the boat to sleep. It would be a 45-minute boat ride to where we would fish. Sleep? Have you ever tried sleeping on the bottom of a boat going full tilt? It was like a bumper care ride. Bump-didee-bump, for 45 minutes – there was no way to sleep in the bottom of the boat.
When we arrived at the fishing grounds, it was light and we stopped in order to start fishing. I was in another (physical) zone trying to sleep but, since we stopped, I knew it was time for me to go up on deck. The problem was, what was I going to do when I got on deck?
It was either I throw up (barf) because I was seasick from the boat ride, or “take a dump” because I hadn’t gone to the restroom in a while. I rushed up the stairs and pushed my head over the railings and barfed my guts out.
When I looked around after letting loose, who did I see laughing but Father! He got the biggest kick out of seeing me heave-ho. I appreciated that because that is how I would have reacted if I were in the parent position as a seasoned fisherman and a novice had come on board fishing for the first time.
It was a sunny, glassy day and I didn’t get sick anymore but had a great experience fishing with Father. He is a very serious fisherman and was meditating while fishing. Thanks, Father, for that experience!
Jan 2, 1977 – Elevator with Father
Father had just given the midnight prayer sermon to start 1977. He probably spoke until at least 1:00 am. Now it was early morning and Father was getting ready to give the morning sermon. Father got into the elevator on the 30th floor and he looked “half awake”. He was tired from his grueling schedule. As he got into the elevator, I could see that his “fly” was open.
As we were riding down on the elevator, I was debating how I should tell Father his fly was open. My physical father used to always ask us, “Do you have a license to sell hot dogs?” when we weren’t zipped up, but I didn’t think that would work for Father. So, I made eye contact with him and pointed to his zipper. It worked.
Study with Hyo Jin Nim
In January of 1977, I was in the guard booth around 9 or 10 pm at night when one of the other security guards radioed to me that I was wanted in the main house. I went into the house and Peter Kim greeted me and said Mother wanted to talk to me. What would this be about??? As we sat down, they started asking me about my education. Did I finish college? Yes. How was my English? Well, I took in college. I didn’t tell them that I got C in it (but it was still better than theirs!) Why are they asking me these questions? They said they wanted me to tutor Hyo Jin Nim. What?
Now, that will be a story for another time, but I did start tutoring him for 4 months (the blind leading the blind). Every night about 5 pm, I would go to his room to work with him on homework.
I would go up to the second floor (the holy of holies) where all the children had their bedrooms and into Hyo Jin’s room to study with him. It wasn’t easy at first but we developed a relationship where he would actually do some studying – but he had all kinds of tricks to try to not study. “Nick, you want some ice cream?” I had to be on my toes because Father or Mother might also come in to see how he was doing.
Hyo Jin Nim’s room had a very nice, comfortable sleep chair where I would read, while Hyo Jin Nim was doing his homework. Surprise! I must have dozed off when I was in the chair and, when I opened my eyes what did I see but Mother standing in the doorway looking at me. My next move was to look at Hyo Jin Nim to see what he was doing. HE WAS NOT IN THE ROOM! Mother asked “Where is Hyo Jin Nim”? Sorry, Mother, I must have dozed off but I don’t know where he is. She laughed and I went to find Hyo Jin Nim.
Birthday Celebration at the EG Main Table
Whenever the children had a birthday, True Parents would have a celebration and invite many of the department heads to come for pledge and breakfast. It was springtime and I was working at the News World at that time. So, we left New York early in the morning to attend the celebration. After the celebration, True Parents and children sat at the main table to eat while everyone else was eating cafeteria style. As the children left the main table for school, Mother would invite guests to take their place. For this particular birthday party, I was invited to sit at the table right next to Mother.
I sat down and wanted to be on my best manners, especially sitting next to Mother. The main course (for Westerners) was fried chicken that looked delicious but was also very messy. Mother told me to enjoy the food. After finishing my chicken, I looked around to see how to clean my fingers. There was a small bowl of clear liquid on the table that I presumed was to clean our fingers with. As I reached to clean my fingers, I saw Mother look at me with a “strange look on her face”. It was then that I realized that what I was putting my fingers in was the Summer Kimchi. I guess I lost some points on that move. Never again was I invited to the table.
Many years later I told the story to True Parents and they got a good laugh out of it. Nothing like living and learning in an international community.
Photo credit by Nicholas Buscovich