Park Jimin

In Korea, 23 years ago, Park Jimin was born on October 13, 1995. He is another year older, a year wiser. Over the next two days, he will be celebrated worldwide. He has inspired, encouraged, and emboldened anyone who knows him. Luckily the whole world has the chance to. Not many people will get the opportunity to be internationally known and loved. Sure there’s celebrities/idols, deities, leaders of religion, and leaders of the world, but in relation to how many people have existed, do exist now, and ever will, the list is pretty small.

For all of you that are now calculating how old I am and building an argument to state how crazy I sound, I welcome your dissent. I am 27 years old. So I know how important it is to appreciate the beautiful things and people of the world. Then comes the argument that if I can notice handsome, kind, loving, hardworking Jimin…who else can I be noticing? Well you aren’t wrong. But there’s another argument here. Can I notice the beautiful things about myself?

In the beginning of Jimin’s career, he worked really hard to develop his vocals. He also went through a lot to create a visual that his fans would like. It was a lot of pressure and responsibility. The fans, “A.R.M.Y.”, were and are so supportive of him and of BTS. BTS is the group that Jimin performs in. The members include J-Hope, RM, Jin, Jungkook, V, Suga, and Jimin of course. They’re all very different personality-wise and simultaneously very similar in the way that they love the fans and dedicate themselves to their work. They’re extremely hardworking and will sacrifice time, sleep, sanity, body, and anything else to create songs, performances, and experiences that the fans will enjoy. Of course we all dream about being famous one day but in retrospect and in seeing just how much they sacrifice I’ve realized that Uncle Ben was right, “With great power comes great responsibility”, and what’s great about BTS and Jimin is that they don’t take that responsibility lightly.

There are so many celebrities that take their fame and run with it, but not in any particular direction. From the beginning, BTS spoke about living up to societal expectations, depression, loneliness, and about how loving yourself is just as important as loving anyone else. Somehow, we always focus on loving someone else. But with BTS, not only has the Love Yourself series been 3 Albums long but the narrative of not being alone and being different has been interwoven into all their music as well as their personal stories.

So, internationally loved, that’s crazy. His life is constantly moving. Being pulled in all directions by everyone and he still has to hold onto who he is when the whole world is telling him who they think he should be. I got nothing. Jimin, you’re a nice guy, keep moving forward.

In knowing Jimin and listening to BTS’s music I know that I don’t love myself the way they say to. I’ve mostly been okay at loving others that way but at this point in my life, for so many reasons I wake up in the morning and feel like falling apart but my alarm clock is “Anpanman”. Anpanman is an unlikely hero in Korea. He isn’t physically impressive, attractive, or perfect, but he doesn’t give up and he is his own kind of hero. He may fall apart and he may not be perfect, but he is heroic in his kindness, in his dedication to love and support the people around him, and in the all too relatable way that even if he has fallen apart he will still dedicate himself to being his own hero and everyone else’s in whatever way possible. Weak heroes are heroes too. This is a new generation of heroes.

We are all insecure. No matter how much we weigh, what we look like, how much money we have, or who our friends are, we all have insecurities. Jimin has openly struggled with his insecurities and he and BTS have changed the narrative on insecurities from wondering what’s wrong with someone who has them, to knowing that they’re strong, capable, and inspiring to acknowledge their insecurities and keep moving forward.

Honestly his birthday couldn’t have come at a better time. He was excluded from the filming for the Graham Norton Show because he is dealing with a lot of neck and back pain. He showed up to the filming but it was decided that he needed to sit it out. Good. I would have loved to see him on the show, but I value his health over anything else. Today and tomorrow are the perfect times for the world to be telling Jimin just how loved and lovely he is. Because he works so hard, has struggled so publicly, and has experienced the support from A.R.M.Y. before, I know that not being able to be on the show with the rest of the members of BTS had to be hard on him. Please don’t cry, Jimin. September 29th was my birthday, and Jungkook created a G.C.F. film from that day. So even though I didn’t get to see y’all this tour, I got a birthday present from all of you. What else could a girl want?

I bought a pair of earrings that look similar to a pair that Jimin/you wore in the beginning of BTS. I wear them nearly every day. I am a digital artist and photographer currently in school for Graphic design, and on the days and nights where I am sacrificing sleep, sanity, and self for my work and start to feel tired, I’ll remember that Jimin/you have felt those same things and Jimin/you kept going.

I have a chronic illness that has stolen a lot of things from me over the past few years and other health issues that will steal other things from me. A certain level of pain is part of my daily life. My personal life is very messy right now and there's very deep emotional pain that will take the rest of my life to deal with. But BTS helps me dance when I feel like laying in bed, smile when I feel like crying, and reminds me that life doesn't need to be perfect to be beautiful.

Today and tomorrow the world celebrates Jimin and in the spirit of the “Love Yourself” series, I will take more time to celebrate and love myself.

P.S. Jimin, I don’t understand why everyone compares you to food either. You’re a man. A very talented, very handsome, inspiring, kind man.

P.P.S. Your story isn’t over yet. You have more hopes and dreams. You never walk alone. Keep moving forward. <3

Sincerely yours,

The Undefeated