Happy Chuseok!

While 'Pilgrims and Indians,' the Iron Bowl, and the Macy's Parade are not a part of this celebration, Chuseok [추석] is a Korean holiday much like Thanksgiving in the United States. Like Thanksgiving, it is a harvest festival filled with family fun! Koreans pay respect to their ancestors, eat traditional food and fresh fruit, and rather than football, watch ssireum. Also, there is no school [whoop whoop!].

 Our weekend was full of Chuseok festivities!  

Friday we participated in the international student celebration, complete with talent show and buffet.  Highlights: one student played "My Heart Will Go On" on the flute, a group of students from China did a dance to K-pop song "Nobody," and I ate octopus for the first time!

We celebrated on Sunday with Uncle Simon and Haejung 이모 where our meal was less Korean and more [American] Italian. Yum…spaghetti and bread with olive oil and balsamic!


Then on Monday, Reverend Jo's family invited us to their home for lunch. The fellowship was great! The food was too…so great that we asked Haejung to teach us how to make japchae, a noodle dish that Mrs. Jo made. Like any food, each chef has their own slightly different version, but we combined sweet potato noodles with onions, carrots, green peppers, eggs, and mushrooms and sautéed everything in sesame oil with soy sauce, cooking wine, sugar, salt, and pepper.   

Rev. Jo, me, Anna, Mrs. Jo, Sharon, Thomas, Haejung

Mrs. Jo "eating" Alabama chocolate

 cooking lesson: japchae and tofu

School is Cool

           Linton Global College is a part of Hannam University where courses are either Korean language courses or are taught in English focusing on global communication, culture, and business. This semester, I am a Linton Global College student, taking Korean I 4 hours a day, 5 days a week. 
           

first day of school!

            My class is composed of people from China, Mongolia, Thailand, Indonesia, Pakistan, Colombia, and the United States. Having people from all over makes class way more fun…and more of a challenge since the only language we all have in common is Korean…and I guess laughter. We laugh a lot, which really helps the time pass more quickly. When we learned the Korean word for dog [개], someone from each country shared the ‘sound‘ that dogs make for their country. 

woof. 

            So far, this learning a new language thing has been quite a challenge, but I am so excited about being able to communicate with people in Korea…in Korean, even though I am sure that many times their English will be better than my Korean. Also, I enjoy the insight into Korean culture that is subtly gained through learning the language.

“He will yet fill your mouth with laughter and your lips with shouts of joy.”

-Job 8:21

Home Sweet Home

           Upon arriving in Korea, we moved straight into our house on the Hannam University campus. Hannam University is a Christian school and was established in 1956 by Presbyterian missionaries. Lucky for us, Anna, Thomas, and I are living in a renovated house that is part of the missionary compound.

our house 

 my room

           My bed is somewhere between a twin and a full size and has a GREAT storage headboard. The wallpaper on the wall next to my bed is fun and iridescent, and [obviously not pictured] I have 2 closets and a set of four drawers.   

the living area

the dining area [with the air conditioner in the corner]

 the kitchen

           The tall gray thing next to the coffee pot is a water filter and dispenser. The red is hot and the blue is cold [unlike the faucet in my shower]. The blue is great for a nice cool glass of water, and the red is serious about being hot and very handy for instant ramen [a considerable part of my Korean diet thus far]. The white and magenta [or maybe just red] appliance between the microwave and the sink is a rice [a STAPLE in my the Korean diet] cooker. 

and last but not least Anna’s and my bathroom!

Orientation & Transportation

           All of the Young Adult Volunteers for the coming year spent the last week of August in New York at Stony Point Center getting...oriented. We had a wonderful week full of lectures about things like culture, culture shock, expectations, globalization, and service mixed with Bible study, worship, small groups, fellowship, stories of YAVA’s experiences in the field, and some pretty great food! 

my small group: Karl, me, Hannah, Julianne, Katie [YAVA-Peru and fearless leader], Jamie

I REALLY LIKE THEM. A LOT.

           Then, thanks to Irene, some groups had a couple of days rest before heading to our sites. Because of all the airline chaos, Anna and I ended up on a different flight than Thomas. We left Stony Point in the wee hours of the morning on Wednesday [August 31^st] and arrived in Daejeon, South Korea on Friday afternoon. While the flight over here is pretty long, it is definitely not that long. We were late leaving because the intended plane for our journey smelled [incredibly] bad, so we [thankfully] waited for a less stinky plane for our flight across the pond. By the time we arrived in Tokyo, Thomas was already getting settled in Daejeon, and our flight to Seoul had left without us. So…Anna and I had got to spend the night in Japan!

sorry, the only picture I took in Japan was of the toilet in the hotel…it's pretty snazzy! 

           After a short flight from Tokyo to Seoul, our site coordinators, Simon and Haejung Park, warmly welcomed Anna and me to South Korea!

           

           On the way to Daejeon [HOME!], we stopped at a rest area and ate bibimbap for lunch and ice cream for dessert - I already love it here!

DISCLAIMER: This is not the first time I am posting something way after the fact [see post below], and it definitely will not be the last.

My apologies...

           I am neither a writer nor an on-timer. I am so very sorry that I am just now blogging after being in Korea for two weeks! While I have been busy, a big part of why I have been putting off blogging is that I just want to write everything and have a picture of everything. I have come to the realization that that is not quite possible [obviously], and I would rather share something than nothing! So here goes…

Better [green tea] latte than never!

From the Beginning...

       In 1999, I was in the 4th grade and the mission committee was planning a trip to Belize. For some reason they let me go, even though I was by far the youngest member of the group. In Orange Walk Town, I helped teach in an elementary school that was part of a church and helped build a house. There is a good chance I got in the way more than I actually taught and supervised more than I actually built, but during the week my eyes were opened to the need present in a neighboring country. That mission trip to Belize sparked in me an interest in service and international missions.

            Since then, I have been on mission trips to Guatemala, back to Belize, Florida, North Carolina, and Tennessee and have participated in various service projects around Alabama. I learned so many different things during each experience about God’s love, about the importance of serving, and about making an impact both physically and spiritually. Each mission trip I have been on has been unique but most have included sharing Jesus through working with children, building or repairing houses, or gathering food and serving those in need.

            The summer after my freshman year in college I was selected to represent the North Alabama Presbytery as a Youth Advisory Delegate to the 218th General Assembly in San Jose, California. While exploring the Exhibit Hall during a break, I came across a brochure for YAV. Young Adult Volunteers - a year of service for a lifetime of change…I instantly knew it was something I wanted to look into. Three years later, here I am, a YAV.  

            Young Adult Volunteers, a PC(USA) program, offers opportunities in Christian service and learning for people ages 19 to 30. The YAV Program has 16 sites both here in the United States and around the world. Young Adult Volunteers serve in communities of need for one year.

            During the spring, I went through the application, discernment, and interview process. I traveled to Louisville, Kentucky for a placement event where I spent time with other potential YAVs and interviewed with the site coordinators for two locations, Guatemala and South Korea. I would have loved to have been placed in either country, but after speaking with Simon and Haejung Park, the coordinators for South Korea, I knew that was where I was being called.

Anna, Thomas, Me, Haejung

            On August 29^th, I will be on a plane to Daejeon, South Korea. What will I be doing there? While I am still learning about my specific responsibilities, I know I will be partnered with a local church and work with an after school program as well as a community development program. For the first four months I will be in language school every morning…working on my Korean.

            I know that this year’s experience is going to be life changing for me. It will involve living outside my comfort zone and what is familiar to me. It will involve focusing on the needs of others. It will involve journeying in faith and trusting God in new ways.  I could not be more excited!

            Whether or not you are supporting me financially, I am so grateful for your prayers and the support you have provided me now and throughout my life.  Also, I am thankful for growing up in First Presbyterian Church and would not change that for anything!