In Order to Live: A North Korean Girl's Journey to Freedom

by Yeonmi Park

But I also know that the spark of human dignity is never completely extinguished, and that given the oxygen of freedom and the power of love, it can grow again.

But there was human intimacy and connection, something that is hard to find in the modern world I inhabit today.

When you have so little, just the smallest thing can make you happy—and that is one of the very few features of life in North Korea that I actually miss.

There were so many desperate people on the streets crying for help that you had to shut off your heart or the pain would be too much. After a while you can’t care anymore. And that is what hell is like.

I was feeling very strong and calm, because I had already made the decision to kill myself instead of accepting this life. I had lost control of everything else, but this was one last choice I could make. I had cried every single day since I left North Korea, so much that I couldn’t believe I had that many tears inside of me. But on the last day of my life, there would be no more crying.