My humble Abode

Well, after living here for almost 5 months, I realized that I have not put any pictures up of my apartment. I would like to share with you where it is that I live...

 My little bathroom. It is rare to actually have a bathtub, so I count my blessings :)

                 Eventually I want to get a couch to go on this wall, but I haven't found one yet.

 Kitchen area. It is also a privilege to have a oven.

 My vanity area where I get ready everyday.

 My desk, that I never use, my closet and my bed.

 My little floor table chairs that I purchase and my bookshelf with all my goodies from Korea and Japan.

 Kitchen area again...

Walking in my front door...

I really like my place. :)

Half Past September

4 1/2 months down... So much has happened in that short amount of time too! It is absolutely impossible to explain to you how much my life has been impacted. Life is definitely not the same. This past weekend was the Korean Holiday of Chuseok, which is their Thanksgiving, but it is really nothing like what I am used to. The only thing I did to enjoy the holiday was take 3 different trips. It was great, but exhausting. The first trip I took was to Daecheon on Saturday, which includes the beach that I have been to now 3 times. I actually swam this time. It was amazing, plus I got to spend the day with a bunch of new friends that arrived here a little over a month ago. When we got back to Cheonan that evening, we got together to celebrate Carly's birthday! We ate pizza and then I had my first experience with a Norae Bang (sp?), which is a karaoke room that a group of people and rent for however long they want and sing. It was a great night that consisted of Lady Gaga, Queen, Hanson, and the last song being The Boot Scootin' boogy... Good times :)


The 2nd trip that I had the privilege of going on was to Everland on Monday, which is a theme park in Suwan/ Yongin. This trip consisted of Bethany, Robert, and myself. We decided to meet around 7 in the morning  for coffee. We then had to be at the subway station shortly after. We were told that taking the subway would take the same amount of time that the train would take, so we decided just to take the subway the whole way. It took about an hour to get to Suwan. While on the subway, we had a run-in with a guy that had gold teeth and was a little creepy. He ended up recording us on his phone for awhile... That is probably the creepiest thing to happen to me since I came to Korea, and he wasn't even Korean. Anyway, we made it to Suwan and I was told to take bus 6000. Well, to our surprise, there was no bus 6000 and of course the information booth was closed due to the holiday. We proceeded to look at the bus schedule and walk around and finally figured out where we were supposed to go. When our bus pulled up, I'm sure there was about 40-50 foreigners trying to make their way onto our bus. We were the only Americans on the bus, though. We ended up having to stand the entire 1 1/2 hour ride to everland. By the time we made it, we had been traveling for about 3 1/2 hours. We stayed at the park for about 5 hours and rode about 5 rides. It was fun, but we were definitely ready to go home when we did. I thought that the trip getting to everland was long, but the trip home was definitely longer.... not to mention that if it wasn't for a couple of nice Koreans, we probably would have ended up somewhere that we would not recognize. On the way home that day, I got a text from Nick, a guy that I went to college with that is now in Korea. He was asking if I would like to join them on a trip to Seoul the next day. Of course I wanted to, so I said yes.

So here is trip #3, which took place on Tuesday, to Seoul. We had standing tickets, so that meant we had to find a place to stand or a place on the floor. I ended up crammed between to seats, but it made the ride more bearable. We finally got there and it was time for lunch. AND where does any American who is in Korea, and has been deprived of American food, go in Seoul????!!! Itaewon, of course! In the beautiful area of Itaewon, there is a Taco Bell, Subway, Quiz nos, Cold Stone and a pretty awesome English book store! I had the joy of eating Subway that day, and I must say it tasted better than I had ever remembered! Well after Itaewon, we went back to the market that I had visited a couple weeks before and walked around. It is probably one of my favorite things that I have done here. The last tourist area that we went to was a palace, and the name is escaping me right now. We walked around there and a couple of us ended up laying on the grass in the park and taking a little nap. After the palace, we met with one of Nick's Korean friends that had attended SNU. She took us to an amazing little Italian restaurant. Then we came back to Cheonan.

I know that was a lot of information crammed into one blog, but now I will let you see some pictures. :)

 Dancing at Cheonan Station after going to Seoul on Tuesday :)

 Bethany, Robert and I at the Everland entrance >

 Jessica, Carly and I at a palace in Seoul.

 Standing on the bus for our ride to Everland >>>

 Hanging out in the Yellow Sea...

 Me shopping at the Namdaemun Market >>>>>











Excited to get our Banana milk after a long day of traveling :)

      The group at Gyeongbokgung Palace >>>>>>

 Yellow Sea at Daecheon Beach

 Dinner in Seoul >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

 Adorable, Korean children :)

                                                                                            Me!!

 My Friends :)

 Cute little boy :)

                                                 Me just being me :)

God always shows up...

Since I have come Korea, I have learned to look for God everywhere... AND I have definitely seen him in so many places. Another time happened today. At church we had a baptism service. I attend the International English Church on the KNU campus. Well to begin, the people being baptized all gave their personal testimonies during the service. It was pointed out how there is a wide variety of cultures represented in the church. It was amazing to me how big God is and how he brings people that are so different, together on a weekly basis. We all serve the same God. When the service part was over, we all went outside where a pool was set up for the baptisms. The congregation stood there together, no matter what our race or color of our skin, we were all there to witness new believers being baptized. We started by singing Amazing Grace. Standing there, I could really feel God. I realized once again how great our God is. Here I was, standing with all these people from different places, singing to the same God. When we started singing the final verse, "When we've been there 10 thousand years..." it made me think about, not only am I going to get to spend eternity with God and the loved ones I have in the states, these people are also going to be there. How amazing is that? My whole life, I was in the way of thinking that God was there, but I never imagined that he was everywhere, including all over the world. My spiritual way of thinking has definitely broadened being here. We finished the service with another song that I really loved. Here are the lyrics:

All that I am, all that I have,

I lay them down before you, oh Lord.

All my regrets, all my acclaims, 

The joy and the pain, I'm making them yours.

Things in the past, things yet unseen, 

Wishes and dreams that are yet to come true. 

All of my hopes, all of my plans, 

My heart and my hands are lifted to you.

Lord, I offer my life to you,

Everything I've been through, Use it for your glory.

Lord, I offer my days to you, 

Lifting my praise to you, As a pleasing sacrifice.

Lord, I offer you my life. 

Already September

Yesterday, Saturday, My friend Nick and I went to Seoul. We went to Seoul Tower which is a place in the city where you can pretty much see the entire city of Seoul. It is a beautiful city. It was my first time being in charge of finding my way around Seoul, and luckily it wasn't difficult at all. We made it safely to Seoul and went to the subway to find our way to the bus stop. When we got to our bus stop, we met a mom and daughter that are from Korea but live in Boston right now. The mom had brought her daughter back to visit. It was interesting to talk to her about her life for a few minutes. We got on the bus and we made our way up the hill to the tower. The bus took us almost to the top, but we had to walk up a pretty steep incline to get to the destination. I can always tell when I get to a tourist area because there are way more foreigners than usual in one place. We bought our tickets for the observatory, and made our way up. When we got to the elevator, it felt like we were about to get on a ride at an amusement park, which was ironic seeing that Naz nite at Six Flags was occurring at the exact same time. We got on the elevator and on the ceiling there was a screen that showed us going into space or something. It was interesting. Well we finally made it to the top and these are the beautiful pictures that I took from there:


                                                                                     

After we went to Seoul Tower, we went to the biggest market in South Korea called Namdaemun Market. There were so many people there so it was a lot of pushing and shoving to get through the place, but it was amazing. There were sooo many things to look at. I know where I am going to be doing my christmas shopping. I will definitely be going back soon. They had everything from clothes, to jewerly, korean souvenirs and so many other things and they were all really cheap. I got a dress and a wallet. I finished the day off by coming back to KNU and just resting. Next weekend will be a 4 day weekend! It is Chuseok, which is the Korean Thanksgiving... well sort of... nothing like the Thanksgiving that I am used to, but it means time off and rest. :)

Namdaemum Market

Flash Mob

Yesterday, I was downtown with a friend and as we were walking, I got experience something that has been on my bucket list! We were walking and heard a bunch of people yelling and saw them running and dancing towards the plaza area... Music started playing really loud and this is what we saw:

It was amazing. I'm really glad that I got to see this. :)

Surprises

This week in good old Cheonan, has been full of surprises. On Monday, one of the Korean teachers that I work with was proposed to. Our boss had told us about a week ago that we were having a very important meeting that night with the foundation directors of our school. We were all really nervous about the meeting, but about 5 minutes before we headed out the door, our boss informed us of what was going on. We stayed quiet so that Jessica wouldn't figure out the surprise. We went to a cafe on the KNU campus. When we walked in there were candles on all the tables and a guy playing a guitar. He started singing Jason Mraz "I'm yours." After that song, he started playing a song and Jessica's boyfriend walked out from behind the projection screen with some flowers. He picked up a microphone and started singing a song that he had composed. It was beautiful. After the song, we watched a slideshow and then he got on one knee and proposed to her. It was adorable and I am so happy that I got the opportunity to share that evening with them.

The second thing to happen this week occurred on Tuesday. A couple that I work with have been expecting a baby and yesterday they welcomed Ella Renee into the world. I got the chance to go and see them today at the hospital. She is beautiful and I am so happy for this amazing couple! They are going to be great parents. I will soon post pictures of this adorable little girl. Not only did Michael and Elizabeth have a baby yesterday, but Joe, another teacher that I work with, welcomed a little baby boy into the world. Apparently this is baby season and I love it!

Other than that, things have been pretty normal. In a couple weeks I am going to get the privilege to lead a bible study about women of the bible. I am extremely nervous to take this on, but I know that God is going to use this opportunity to help me grow spiritually. I am very excited for it! 

Essence

Well this past week I had the privilege of having my very first surgery. Not only was it my first, but it was in Korea. I can say that it was really nerve racking... I woke up a little over a week ago with a really bad toothache. I never have toothaches so I decided to head to the dentist last Monday. Of course the dentist did not speak and English except for a couple words, so that made me a little nervous. They took X-rays and found out that the wisdom tooth on the bottom right was causing some damage. It had entwined itself into the nerves of another tooth and that was causing all my pain. They quickly told me that I needed surgery and we scheduled it for Friday, the 12th. I had to wait for 4 1/2 days, and that made me even more nervous. The part that bothered me the most is that it was hard to ask questions. I wanted to know if they were just going to numb my mouth or if they were going to sedate me. I did not get this answer until walking into the office on Friday. There I saw two huge needles that would make my mouth numb... The whole process took about 15 minutes and I only paid about $220. That was for everything including my appointment on Monday. I believe that is a pretty good deal right there. Korea's healthcare system is awesome. Well I got home on Friday and just went to bed. I woke up on Saturday with barely any swelling at all. Today there is little pain, which is great! I still have about 2 days until the pain is completely gone, but I am okay with that. This was definitely an experience that I will not be forgetting any time soon. I have to go back this Friday to get my stitches taken out, but other than that, I am okay with never having to have another tooth cut out.

Also on Friday, the summer intensive courses ended!!!! That may have been the greatest thing to happen since I got here... haha. BUT, I still have one more full week before we return to regular work schedule. This week is going to include about 4 hours of VBS every morning before going to work and then not getting off until about 12 hours after we started the day. I'm not really looking forward to the long hours, but I am looking forward to seeing God work in the lives of some children. I am the spokesperson the Movie room. I am kind of worried because I don't know how it all will go. I will have a translator, but that just worries me more. I know that it is all going to be fine, but it still makes me nervous.

So basically, this next Friday will top this past Friday.. which will be AMAZING! I cannot wait until I actually have time to do other things besides work here. I will have time to actually blog about things, which I know that I have been slacking on lately.

Intense...

In 10 days, it will officially be 3 months since I got here... WOW! I can remember sitting on my front porch in Texas, the day before I left, and was so worried about everything. God had me in his hands the entire time, and I am thankful to be a child of the King. I am surrounded by amazing people that are slowly becoming just like family to me.

My vacation ended on Monday and we started intensives (which is summer courses for the students that are summer vacation right now). So, I start teaching at 10:00 am instead of 2:00 pm... That is just a little bit of an adjustment. AND... I teach three more classes than normal, so it has been a little stressful, but I have enjoyed this week so much. God once again has placed some amazing people in my life and I am so blessed. I can't help but think that in 9 short months I am going to have to leave this place... That is already making me sad. This is becoming home to me right now and I am so glad to have the feeling of home in a distant country... It makes this so much easy.

So I walked into work this morning and there was a box for me... FROM CAMP BOND!!! It brought a few tears to my eyes... Everything in the box reminded me of my 2nd home and 2nd family. I get reminded everyday of all the people that are at home in the states that are thinking and praying for me. I never realized how much I was loved until I get here and feel the support of people half a world away... I can't even begin to express how thankful I am for that. In my box, I had everything from a woo woo, candy galore, a t-shirt, a camp bond lanyard, peanut butter, paintballs, band-aids, a cd, a few letters, shampoo, a golf ball, a rubber ducky, a ping-pong ball, two water bottles, and a fancy camp bond pen... It made me miss the summers that I spent at camp, but then again I know that God wants me here, and that they all will be waiting when I get home.

"Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you not forsake you!!" Deuteronomy 13:6

Reality kicks in...

The time that I have been here has really made me think about things. I know that God has brought me here and that it is part of his plan. Without a doubt, I am aware of this. There are sometimes that I wished that everyone in my life could fully understand this. I've always been the person that has never pushed my way of thinking onto someone else or I have never not accepted someone for who they are... This is how I am and I hope to always be. I consider myself a good friend that can be approached with everything. Because of this, I have begun to realize that everyone is not like me and that they are not going to accept me for who I am and the decisions that I make. I am blessed to be surrounded mostly by those who are standing behind me in whatever it is that I choose to do with my life. It is really hard to understand how anyone could not see how God has blessed me. That is the only reason that I am where I am and doing what I am doing. The world is full of different people and it has always been my goal to love everyone and accept them no matter what they believe. Is that wrong? Lately, it seems to be hurting me more than helping me... I want to be able to show compassion to those who don't understand compassion. I want to be there for the fallen who have no where else to go and I want to give them hope. Every decision that I make from this day on has nothing to do with what I want but what God wants. I am no longer going to justify my actions, but going to put complete faith in God that he will use me as a earthly example of what he can do in someone's life. I biggest prayer is that God will be shown through me and that others will begin to understand why I do what I do. I know that obstacles like this are always going to be thrown my way, but with God I can do anything...

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.    Romans 8:28

Vacation

I haven't written on here in quite awhile, but I have been super busy with work and I recently just got back from my vacation.

The first place that I had the opportunity to visit was the DMZ. I can't explain how this made me feel. I have always heard about the conflict in Korea, but to actually see it up close, really makes it more a reality. While we were standing at the JSA, which is the part of the DMZ that has the meeting room where both sides meet. At one point, I walked to the other side of the meeting room and was officially in North Korea. That was a lot to take in. Here are my photos from the DMZ tour.






We were also told that these two countries are the only ones that have to stand face to face with their enemies for many hours a day. I could not even imagine how they can do that. There is a 5cm x 50 cm slab of concrete that separate the two sides, but being there it could have just have been a 500 ft wall. It was an experience that I am thankful that I got to see.


The second trip that I took was to Busan, Korea. It is basically the Florida of South Korea. It was so beautiful. The first thing that we did was find a hotel, and of course we looked for the coolest looking hotel... we ended up at one that looked like a castle.. haha... It was pretty great. Well after settling, we made our way to the beach, which was sooooo cold... so we didn't stay too long. We got to go to a few markets in the area. We also met a guy that was from New York and had been in Korea since 1994. He showed us some places in Busan that we probably wouldn't have found on our own. I have learned that in Korea, if you see someone that speaks English, it is necessary to talk to them. Well, we left Busan the next day on a Ferry to Japan... Here are my pictures of Busan...



The trip to Japan was an experience I will definitely never forget. Our trip was 100 % Korean Style. There are many things that I learned on this trip:

1. Koreans don't slow down. Once they start walking, you have to power walk to stay up.
2. Korean is not a language that is easy to pick up on.
3. Being on a ship with about 300 Koreans and being 1 or 2 foreigners, makes you stand out just a little bit.
4. Sleeping arrangements for Koreans include a mat on the floor, a blanket, and a rock hard pillow. Oh.. and sleeping with about 10 other people in the same room.
5. Showering the Korean way includes being in one big room with a whole bunch of naked women... and I already mentioned being the only foreigner and standing out... yeah...
6. Squat-a-potties take a true skill to use.
7. Koreans eat REALLY quickly.
8. Being the only foreigners getting off the boat in Japan = the only two people to get our bags completely searched.
9. Don't leave the water on when you're brushing your teeth, they don't like that.
10. Japan has the greatest spas... even if they are nude spas...
11. After only 2 days with Koreans, I was more than happy to get home... they are exhausting.
12. This trip was probably one of the greatest trips I have ever been on.

So we took a ferry, and I got a little sea sick... We woke up in Japan. We went to a couple palaces, villages, Fukuoka, Volcanos and stayed at the most awesome resort. Our resort consisted of every room being a dome like building. It was pretty interesting. I would love to go back. I want to see more of the world and I know that these trips are just a small start to the journeys that I will take in the future. I can help but keep thinking about the creator of this world. I was walking down from the volcano in the middle of the Japanese country side, and it was absolutely amazing. I walked down alone, so I had some time to think and pray. Seeing the world just shows me more and more everyday how big my God is and how amazing he is. One experience that really touched me happened the last night. I was laying on the floor in the room reading my bible. There were 3 older Korean men in the room watching baseball. One of them knew English pretty well because he had lived in California for 10 years. Well as I was sitting there, the men started pulling out some beers and drinking them. One of the men asked me what I was reading and I told them. They all smiled and one of them picked up his beer and moved closer to me and asked me if it offended me. I told him no and just kept reading. The room that we stayed in was connected to two other rooms in a way, so when one room shut off the lights, all the lights went out. Well I was reading still and someone in the other rooms shut the lights off. I just closed my bible and started putting it up, but the old man told me no and he stood up to turn on the light, so I started reading again. Well the other room turned the light off again and it made the man angry so he yelled something, but all I could understand was bible and turned the light back on... Well, needless to say, no one turned out the light for awhile after that. It just made me smile that he was standing there trying to keep the light on for me. I really thank God for every opportunity that I am granted with to minister to others. Here are my pictures from Japan.

A Palace and Pizza

On Saturday, I got the privilege to spend the day in Seoul with an awesome friend that I met at SNU. I worked with her for a year in the commons and she now lives in Seoul. We first went to the Changdeok Palace, which was amazing. She told me a lot of the history, which of course I did not know. She was a great guide and I love that I got to see Seoul the way that she showed it to me. We ate at a little pizza place, which may have been the greatest pizza that I had ever had... maybe. Thanks Katie for everything!

Where did June go?

I am really curious as to where the month of June has gone. It seems like I have just arrived here and in a short week, my two month mark will pass. I've already experienced enough that I can honestly say that I have changed because of it. I have learned about life and who I am. Here is a short list of things that I have learned about life:

1. No matter where you are in the world, God is there.
2. No matter how much you try to avoid it, the devil will always be there to tempt you.
3. God is the only thing that is certain, nothing else matters.
4. I will never again take my family and friends for granted because they care about me and stand behind me in all decisions that I make.
5. I have possibly the best family in the entire world.
6. I am never alone, even though loneliness may be affecting me. I can always rely on God to answer when I call.
7. Nothing can make me happier than hearing the voice of God through the laughter of a small child.
8. It's amazing that stepping out of my comfort zone can cause me to take a look at my life and see what I need to work on... and that is one big process.
9. The only reason that I am here is because God put me here and opened all the doors... Without that, I have nothing.
10. I now know what it is like to be completely humbled and bare in the presence of God and give everything to him.

At the orphanage that I have been going to every week, there is a little girl that has only been there for a couple weeks. She is the only little girl surrounded by energetic little boys. I made it my goal to get her to open up, even if it is just for her to smile once in my general direction. I can only imagine what this young girl has gone through in her short life and I just want her to know that she is loved. The day began with all of us playing with the boys while the little girl watched quietly in the corner, playing with a balloon. I slowly made my way closer to her, trying to be as sneaky as possible so she wouldn't realize. We eventually started playing with a stuffed snoopy doll. It began with me sitting snoopy on the floor and her kicking it away. She began laughing hysterically, which of course warmed my heart. At this time, she stood up, looked at me and proceeded to sit in my lap. She then turned around, looked at me, and kissed me on the cheek. I have never experienced seeing the love of God through a small child, but I now know what it is to see that. I am truly blessed to be here.

I recently found out some bad news... My uncle Ronnie is in the hospital with cancer and they have given him about 3 days to live. My family lost my grandpa in May and are still healing from that, and I don't know what kind of affect this will have on them all. If you are reading this, please just pray for a miracle or just for my family to be able to come together and get through this as a family. I know that life happens, but sometimes I still have to ask why things happen. I know that good comes from every situation, but it is hard to see right now.

And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God's love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow--not even the powers of hell can separate us from God's love.  Romans 8:38

Same place, Another day....

Forecast for South Korea: RAIN, Rain and more Rain... did I mention it was supposed to rain... I'm going to do my best to box it up and send it back to the great plains of Texas :)

Well, other than that, life is going pretty great. I have finally decided where I will be spending my vacation. To begin, I will be going to the fabulous country of North Korea... well kind of. I am going to the DMZ and in a certain meeting room, I can actually go to the North Korea side of the room. We have to follow certain dress codes and what not, too... It should be interesting. Well after we come home from that, I will be headed to Busan, South Korea for a couple days of fun in the sun at the beach. After that, I will board a Ferry and head to Japan, where I will be spending a couple days. I am sooo excited! Vacation cannot possibly get here quick enough.

 This is a cup of coffee that one of my friends ordered, and I thought it was the coolest thing... that takes talent right there...

 My amazing Caramel Latte :)

 7-Eleven... yeah they have them here too... definitely not the same though... trust me...

 Boys playing soccer on the side walk.

 The bank that I use... and another part of the KNU campus..

 My place of employment.

 The subway station

 E-mart, which is basically the Korean Wal-mart... It is 3 floors high though.. They totally out did Wal-mart...

I recently came across a friend that I know from SNU that grew up here in South Korea. I am so excited because she has told me that she will show me all the things in Korea that I probably wouldn't see if I was just doing the tourist things... It should be a good time!

Life goes on...

I started volunteering at an orphanage on Wednesday morning. All I have to do is play with some toddlers for an hour and a half. Sounds great to me! The kid's laughter reminds me of what it is to be truly happy. We get so caught up in the world that we forget true happiness and what it feels like. I could only dream of having the happiness of a small child. These children have no parents, but they don't quite understand the concept yet. I envy these children in many ways. As I keep adding to my schedule, I can't hep but thank God for all the many opportunities that I have been granted. I have yet to really branch out and see very much of this beautiful place, but I have already been blessed more than I ever could have imagined.

I don't think I have mentioned a lot about where I work quite yet. I don't actually work in a public school, but more of an after school-school. the students attend their school and then come to us to learn English. I work from 2:00-7:00 most days and a little later on the other evenings. I teach from about 10 different books to all age levels from elementary to middle school. Every class I teach is so very different. I really have not had very many problems with my students. That may be because I don't understand a lot of what they are saying. They could be cursing me constantly and I just don't know it!! lol! Other than that I absolutely love the culture here. I can't wait to get even more immersed in the culture...

Stars are holding you tonight..

Monday will mark 6 weeks of being here. First i just want to acknowledge the fact that my heart and mind can't help but remember what happened 2 years ago on this day. I lost a best friend who blessed my life so very much. Logan, I miss you buddy! Things really have not been the same! My life is definitely different because you were in it, even if it was just a short time. I love ya! <3

                       

Tonight- Fm Static

I remember the times we spent together
All those drives, we had a million questions
All about our lives
And when we got to New York everything felt right
I wish you were here with me,
Tonight

I remember the days we spent together,
were not enough, it used to feel like dreaming
Except we always woke up,
Never thought not having you here now
Would hurt so much

Tonight I've fallen and I can't get up
I need your loving hands to come and pick me up
And every night I miss you
I can just look up
And know the stars are
Holding you, holding you, holding you
Tonight

I remember the time you told me
About when you were eight
And all those things you said that night
That just couldn't wait
I remember the car you were last seen in
And the games we would play
All the times we spilled our coffees
And stayed out way too late

I remember the time you sat and told me
About your Jesus, and how not to look back
Even if no one believes us
When it hurts so bad, sometimes
Not having you here

I sing
Tonight I've fallen and I can't get up
I need your loving hands to come and pick me up
And every night I miss you
I can just look up
And know the stars are
Holding you, holding you, holding you
Tonight

I sing
Tonight I've fallen and I can't get up
I need your loving hands to come and pick me up
And every night I miss you
I can just look up
And know the stars are
Holding you, holding you, holding you
Tonight

New things...

I now feel like I actually live here.. It has only taken me a little over a month for it to really sink in. I did get the opportunity to go the beach again this past weekend with a different group. It was actually warm this time, so I actually felt like I went to the beach... I actually have some color in my skin now... haha! It was a very interesting experience. There we were in our swimsuits, and getting funny looks from the natives, who were all in shorts and t-shirts. I'm sure they were just thinking,"Those dumb foreigners..." I have a feeling they probably think that a lot about us...

 I'm hoping to get to come back for the mud festival that occurs in July. It is basically a big mud fight... but the mud is supposed to be really good for your skin... I'm really excited about it!!!  

So, on a different note, I have been trying to fill my time with things to do. I don't have anything to do in the mornings and I am ready to start filling my time with things. So far, I am going to start going to a gym with one of my co-workers. I am also going to start attending a bible study on Thursday mornings and hopefully begin leading it in the near future. I have never been given the opportunity to lead a bible study, but I know that it is going to be very rewarding... I'm actually pretty nervous about the whole thing. I know that God is giving me all of these opportunities to make my time here absolutely worth while. I still have over 10 months of time to see this amazing country and do the things that God has in store for my life.

There are more things I would like to add to my list of things that I have learned in Korea:

1. I have a feeling that I am going to be kind of rude when I come back to the states. When I am here, I don't say excuse me or say sorry when I run into someone... It is just not something that you do here. So I am apologizing in advance if I run into you when I get back, and I don't say sorry...

2. If you are running late to something, don't worry, there will always be someone that is going to be more late than you are... AND nothing ever starts on time.

3. Oklahoma people are much better drivers that Koreans... and that takes a lot for me to say since I think that Oklahomans are crazy drivers.

4. It feels really good to be a millionaire, even if it is in the currency of won.

5. Indian food could possibly be the greatest thing I have ever eaten.

6. I will never get irritated at someone for not knowing English in the states ever again. When you become the person that is the minority, it opens your eyes and makes you more humble.


I am sure that this list will continue to grow as I live here longer, but as for now, that is all I can add.

" I don't want to get to the end of my life and find that I just lived the length of it.. I want to have lived the width of it as well." - Diane Ackerman