Shin Ae Ra shares touching reason for gratitude toward 90-year-old father

Actress Shin Ae Ra has shared her heartfelt emotions regarding her 90-year-old father. Her reflections on the parents who protected and guided her since childhood, now viewed through the eyes of an adult child, carry a profound weight that transcends a simple family update.

On the 10th, Shin shared a recent visit to her father's home via her SNS, writing, “I’m taking a few memories from Dad’s house. Dad’s house is filled with memories from decades ago.” While gathering her parents' wedding photos and pictures from her own rookie days, she found herself confronting the passage of time once again.

The most poignant part of her post was her expression of thanks: “I am grateful to have a Dad I can visit,” and “Thank you, Dad, for surrendering your license.” While it may seem like a minor change in daily life, considering her father is 90, the decision is a significant step toward managing his life more safely in his advanced age.

Driving has long been a symbol of adult independence. Because it allows one to choose their own destination and move by their own will, a car represents more than just transportation; it signifies autonomy and one's sphere of activity. Consequently, the moment elderly parents let go of the steering wheel serves as a major turning point, where they sacrifice mobility in exchange for a new way of life.

The fact that Shin expressed this as "gratitude" is particularly striking. From a child's perspective, a parent surrendering their driver's license can be seen as an act of consideration for their own safety and a decision that eases the child's worries. While parents once took responsibility for their children's safety, a reversal occurs where children eventually find themselves worrying about their parents.

In recent years, Shin has been relatively open about her father. Last January, she revealed that her 90-year-old father had held a so-called "pre-funeral."

At that time, Shin recalled that her father had lived alone for a long time after her mother passed away, noting, “It has already been 21 years since Mom went to heaven.” Reflecting on her father, who had been living alone since he was 68, she expressed her remorse, saying, “Even though I knew how he felt, I am a lacking daughter who never properly listened to his grievances.”

A pre-funeral is a way of organizing one's life and sharing final greetings with family by anticipating one's own passing. While it may seem like accepting death prematurely, it is also a ritual to convey one's heart to remaining family and settle one's affairs. As society ages, the cultural movement to independently prepare for the end of life is gradually spreading.

This is why Shin's recent SNS post feels even more moving. While she watched her father organize his life a few months ago, she is now revisiting their shared history by looking through old photos. It is an attitude of being conscious of future partings while simultaneously trying to hold onto the present more dearly.

“I wonder how fast time flies; even now, it will soon turn into the past, into memories, into recollections,” Shin said, adding, “I will fully enjoy the music I am listening to in the car, the scenery I am seeing now, and the family I am with now. Seize the moment.” It is a message that, while acknowledging that time cannot be turned back, she intends to live every moment with her family as faithfully as possible.

In particular, her act of taking family photos and pictures from her rookie days is meaningful in terms of the materiality of memory. While a single photograph cannot restore lost time, it serves as a medium to call a specific moment into the present. For Shin, who has portrayed countless lives as an actress, the actual scenes of life spent with her family are ultimately what remain most vividly.

After debuting as a specially recruited talent for MBC in 1989, Shin has been active in both dramas and variety shows. She married actor Cha In-pyo in 1995, had her first son in 1998, and has since raised three children, including two daughters she adopted.

Her consistent openness regarding adoption, family, and child education is seen as a reflection of her deep-seated values. Cha In-pyo and Shin Ae Ra are regarded as a representative celebrity couple who have raised social awareness regarding adoption throughout their long marriage. To them, family is not defined solely by blood ties, but by a relationship of taking responsibility for and caring for one another's time.

In that sense, Shin's confession clearly illustrates how the relationship between parent and child shifts throughout the life cycle. Where her father once held the steering wheel to carry the family, there is now an age where the daughter hopes her father can continue his daily life safely. The care she once received from her parents is now being returned through her concern and consideration.

Ultimately, the "gratitude" Shin expressed is not just about a driver's license. It is gratitude for the fact that she still has a father she can visit, a person to share old family memories with, and the present time that can still be held onto.

Time changes the face of a family, but that change is inevitable. Therefore, Shin's advice to "seize the moment" serves as both a personal vow to her family and a quiet reminder to all generations that the time between parents and children is finite.