Summer time — the most popular time of the year to go on a cross-country road trip or backpack through Europe with say, 3-5 of your closest friends. Not for 25 year old Jinna Yang. Instead, she opted to travel all over the world with a 6 ft cardboard cut-out of her father, taking pictures along the way with it at each city she visited. Talk about some serious dedication.
About a year ago, Yang’s father Jay Kwon Yang tragically lost his life to stomach cancer at the age of 52. Yang and her brother had been mostly raised by her father, as their mother abandoned them at a young age. In addition to being a selfless and dedicated father, Jay Kwon Yong was also a certified pro golfer and had the opportunity to go on a tour. He was never able to fulfill his dreams of traveling however, as he had to take care of his children.
After Yang’s father passed, she felt that she could not express her grief through common therapeutic methods such as talking it out with her friends, as she expressed in her blog. Instead, she decided the best way to honor her father was by living out his dreams to travel all over the world.
“Sometimes you have to hit rock bottom to know which direction to go,” Yang told CNN. “I was broken, and because I allowed myself to accept that, I found the strength to make a change.”
In her blog, she also writes about her inspiration for this moving tribute. Yang was inspired by the movie Up in the Air starring George Clooney, who was asked by his sister to take a cutout of her and her fiance in different cities.
Yang has picked up quite a bit of attention for her heartwarming act. Unfortunately, all this attention also attracts controversy. Some claim that the story is too good to be true and others say some pictures are photoshopped.
Despite these allegations, most people are moved by her tribute and argue that the emotions she express are deep and honest. Check out the photos below and tell us what you think.
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