and just like that, our orientation is done. tomorrow, we get on buses and go to our cities. we meet our co-teachers, see our apartments (FINALLY), and visit our schools. here is where the rubber hits the road, and i am so ready. i am excited to get out there and experience korea. to start living my life here and to start teaching. the orientation has been awesome and necessary, but there's still so much unknown, and the only way to get answers is to start trying.
tonight was our closing ceremony. EPIK brought in the most massively long buffet that i have ever seen in my life. there was so much delicious food. then, there was a talent show (our class sang "Stand by Me" in 3 different languages) full of dancing and goofing off. afterwards, a handful of us went out to a seedy little bar full of paper lanterns and ordered pitchers of kiwi soju. sitting around chatting and laughing, i started to feel really comfortable. looking around the table at all the fascinating new personalities, i felt like the potential for adventures and friendships to develop and grow in gwangju is great, and i'm looking forward to how it all will pan out. off to sleep now, big day tomorrow!
Thursday, August 25, 2011
Sunday, August 21, 2011
mountains beyond mountains
and there's no end in sight.
south korea is beautiful. a rippled, wrinkled landscape full of hills, and mountains traced by snakes of low-lying clouds. it has been lush and wet and green. we're living on jeonju university's campus, which is huge and modern. we walk to class, we eat in the cafeteria, and we sleep back in the dorms. we sit through long lectures and have homework. we're literally "back to college" for a week, which i suppose some people would wish for, but i find myself feeling a little old. most of the young teachers here seem to want to recreate just that: the endless party that some immortalize college to be. most of the people here want to do everything in their power to make that party last a little longer. hence, teaching overseas.
so far, honestly, the biggest culture shock has been the western peers that we're surrounded by. i've been thrown into groups before not knowing a soul, and have always come out with lifelong friends on the other side. but i never gave much though to the fact that all those groups (camp, college, ywam) had strong christian communities that i could be supported by. i do hope i find that here, and i have found some wonderfully kind people, but most of them seem to have only 1 objective in mind this week: to drink. and drink. and drink.
i've never been one to pass up a cold one, but the way that most people orient all their energies and conversations around it, it almost takes on a god-like glow. and i'd rather not bow down at that altar, especially here and now, when people don't know me and don't know what i'm about.
actually, as i sit here and lament this, david is downstairs at a worship service being held in the cafeteria. my proper response should, obviously, have been to go. i know, sometimes i make no sense. i wanted to go, but the other problem i've encountered here is the endless, exhausting stream of people and conversations and nicey-nice chit-chat that i have to wade through all day long. everyone here is an accquaintance, and it takes time and energy to push through that title and get comfortable as friends. don't get me wrong, it's been a blast meeting people and making connections and hearing their stories. i love that. but at the end of an extremely long day, introverted breeann needs a little time to refuel. my resources are depleted.
these are my tired complaints, but really, overall this experience has started out fantastically well. our classes are so wonderful and are helping me to feel really prepared and equipped. they are actually getting me excited to teach, which is something i haven't felt in a long while. i can't wait to get into my classroom and start trying different strategies and activities out. the culture is wonderfully respectful and peaceful, the food is unique and relatively healthy, and our city sounds like it will have so much to offer david and i. there's so much natural beauty to explore - mountains, coastlines, and islands. i can't wait to soak it all in.
our (or at least 'my' anyway) continued prayers are for authentic friends - christian and non-christian so that we can be encouraged but also be a light. before i left, i also prayed that my faith would stand up under new and unknown pressures, and i already feel that happening here. christians are in the minority, and it's odd to feel that way, but i want my faith and convictions to be unwaivering.
onward.
south korea is beautiful. a rippled, wrinkled landscape full of hills, and mountains traced by snakes of low-lying clouds. it has been lush and wet and green. we're living on jeonju university's campus, which is huge and modern. we walk to class, we eat in the cafeteria, and we sleep back in the dorms. we sit through long lectures and have homework. we're literally "back to college" for a week, which i suppose some people would wish for, but i find myself feeling a little old. most of the young teachers here seem to want to recreate just that: the endless party that some immortalize college to be. most of the people here want to do everything in their power to make that party last a little longer. hence, teaching overseas.
so far, honestly, the biggest culture shock has been the western peers that we're surrounded by. i've been thrown into groups before not knowing a soul, and have always come out with lifelong friends on the other side. but i never gave much though to the fact that all those groups (camp, college, ywam) had strong christian communities that i could be supported by. i do hope i find that here, and i have found some wonderfully kind people, but most of them seem to have only 1 objective in mind this week: to drink. and drink. and drink.
i've never been one to pass up a cold one, but the way that most people orient all their energies and conversations around it, it almost takes on a god-like glow. and i'd rather not bow down at that altar, especially here and now, when people don't know me and don't know what i'm about.
actually, as i sit here and lament this, david is downstairs at a worship service being held in the cafeteria. my proper response should, obviously, have been to go. i know, sometimes i make no sense. i wanted to go, but the other problem i've encountered here is the endless, exhausting stream of people and conversations and nicey-nice chit-chat that i have to wade through all day long. everyone here is an accquaintance, and it takes time and energy to push through that title and get comfortable as friends. don't get me wrong, it's been a blast meeting people and making connections and hearing their stories. i love that. but at the end of an extremely long day, introverted breeann needs a little time to refuel. my resources are depleted.
these are my tired complaints, but really, overall this experience has started out fantastically well. our classes are so wonderful and are helping me to feel really prepared and equipped. they are actually getting me excited to teach, which is something i haven't felt in a long while. i can't wait to get into my classroom and start trying different strategies and activities out. the culture is wonderfully respectful and peaceful, the food is unique and relatively healthy, and our city sounds like it will have so much to offer david and i. there's so much natural beauty to explore - mountains, coastlines, and islands. i can't wait to soak it all in.
our (or at least 'my' anyway) continued prayers are for authentic friends - christian and non-christian so that we can be encouraged but also be a light. before i left, i also prayed that my faith would stand up under new and unknown pressures, and i already feel that happening here. christians are in the minority, and it's odd to feel that way, but i want my faith and convictions to be unwaivering.
onward.
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Thought in an airport
Airports are such strange cells
Everyone I pass looks like someone
I know. In transit, in limbo,
You never really sleep, never really wake
But wait, wait, wait, to find
What's on the other side of the ocean.
...
I want to take it one day at a time. I'm really nervous. There's so much unknown. Where will we live, how will we eat, what if I'm a terrible teacher and have no friends?? This is what I do - play the worst case scenario over and over in the hopes that I might be pleasantly surprised.
Packing was the worst - our apartment and our suitcases. Endless trips and reevaluating. We concluded with 5 checked bags... Pretty good for 2 people for a year, but they still charged an arm and a leg.
Goodbyes got increasingly more difficult as our numbered days dwindled... Til only family was left. My sleepy-eyed sister in her bedroom doorway, long hugs from a teary- eyed mother, and a peppy father, planting a kiss on my cheek.
We will make the most. We will learn and grow and have stories to tell. We will try to love like Him, and we'll be practically forced to rely on Him... and I think those are all inevitably good things. I'll try to think on those.
Everyone I pass looks like someone
I know. In transit, in limbo,
You never really sleep, never really wake
But wait, wait, wait, to find
What's on the other side of the ocean.
...
I want to take it one day at a time. I'm really nervous. There's so much unknown. Where will we live, how will we eat, what if I'm a terrible teacher and have no friends?? This is what I do - play the worst case scenario over and over in the hopes that I might be pleasantly surprised.
Packing was the worst - our apartment and our suitcases. Endless trips and reevaluating. We concluded with 5 checked bags... Pretty good for 2 people for a year, but they still charged an arm and a leg.
Goodbyes got increasingly more difficult as our numbered days dwindled... Til only family was left. My sleepy-eyed sister in her bedroom doorway, long hugs from a teary- eyed mother, and a peppy father, planting a kiss on my cheek.
We will make the most. We will learn and grow and have stories to tell. We will try to love like Him, and we'll be practically forced to rely on Him... and I think those are all inevitably good things. I'll try to think on those.
Saturday, August 6, 2011
home is where you are
since we've been back from africa, it's been a flurry of activity. it feels like every moment is scheduled, and we keep adding on to never ending lists.
david and i now know that we are going to be teaching in south korea this fall. everything is finally signed, sealed, and delivered. our visas, our plane tickets, our suitcases all purchased and itching to be used. landing back in des moines was the most bittersweet feeling... such a relief to be on familiar soil and such a joy to see my dad and the cowgers, grinning wide at the baggage claim... but i felt a twinge of faltering confidence as i realized i'd be soon saying goodbye to the same people, at the same airport.
here's the breakdown of our days, worth remembering when we're far from home:
friday and saturday: saw sari and elliot in cedar falls! it was so much fun interacting with little E, and it's amazing how much he's grown in such a short while. we spent a lot of time centered around him, watching him explore and smile and shrug. took lots of pictures and enjoyed relaxing on the deck by the river.
saturday: saw kali and andy at their lovely new home in wdm. they're such incredible cooks and hosts - they made some awesome bruchetta and a delicious "meatlog". it was so great to reconnect w/them and others. their little asher is so mellow and content, as i held him he tried to eat every bead on my necklace for a good half hour. i'm so glad they're back in dsm, but so sad to be leaving right as they get back.
sunday: talked at Z about our colorado trip, and made the big announcement that we're leaving. everyone was pretty encouraging, thankfully. that evening, had girl's group at my place w/dana, mary, and tracy. always good discussion and vulnerability. i love these girls lots, and have been so grateful to have them in my life.
monday: huh. don't know what we did on monday...... ohhh wait. i do. we did our last "grill-out monday" and had yummy salmon while watching the finale of the bachelorette. we knew it would probably be our last opportunity to veg out like that for a long while. drank our "savannah dry ciders" from SA too.
tuesday: lunch w/brent, kari, and the kids at gusto pizza. delish! man, i love b & k, and i so love their kids too. it's so fun how they've become such good friends over the years. brent is like a brother to me, and i love how he and david act like middle schoolers around each other. they're a fantastic couple that we admire so much. we're gonna do our best to keep in touch w/them.
tuesday evening: ate dinner up at carlie and tony's house in ankeny. their kids micah and evitt are another couple of our faves. evitt was buddying up next to david and it was so adorable. micah had a dance party in the middle of the room for awhile to entertain us. they're such fun. jesse driver came to dinner too... and thus ensued the most i've laughed in a looooong time. gosh, he is such a fantastic, deadpan story-teller. he says the most shocking things with a straight face. he told a story about a rat in his toilet, and david was crying from laugh so hard. i wish we'd had more time to get to spend w/carlie and tony. just this summer we've started to discover what good friends they are.
wednesday: a good AM meeting w/brent and denise. in the afternoon, brent and i took some kids to a park for afternoon activities and carousel rides, then got some ice cream. it was a beautiful, summer afternoon. i took sophie up on the playground and another girl was calling her my daughter and i couldn't help thinking how fun it would be to actually be a mom, taking my kids to the playground. i know, i know, i probably see motherhood through rose-tinted glasses at the moment, but i can't wait to experience it someday.
wednesday evening: dinner at my parents, with the keller's over. it was great to reconnect with them and reminisce and relive africa. my mom made some good chicken lasagna, and we sat outside as the cicadas roared in the nearby trees. it's the most comfortable feeling in the world to sit with my family and take it all in. my dad being goofy, all hyped-up about his new blog that he's started, mom being the perfect hostess, jenalee talking about her internship - it all fills me with such sweet love. all the more knowing that i won't get to experience it for a year. if anything, i will come home so appreciative.
thursday: david's 28th birthday! he went to the IMAX harry potter movie earlier in the day w/amelia. that night, we met up w/a revolving door of friends over at wellman's pub in wdm. i think at one time or another we had jenalee, abby, anu, ryan galloway, ryan and lyndsay solomon, zach and ben anderson, seth, eric, myself and david all around a big table. later in the night, the sports switched over to cranked-up music videos, so we decided to call it a night.
friday: i had an eye appointment to finally get some new specs. in the afternoon we swung by zion to make sure our SA video would work. at 6, i met up at mary, tracy, and emily's house to determine whether or not we should go camping. it had been our original plan, but it had also been raining all day. we decided to nix the camping and instead went out to eat at open seasame (one of my faves). we met up with dana, anu, and mallory down there and i ate hummus to my heart's content. there was a belly dancer swirling around in that tiny little dive space, dancing and waving her scarves, which cracked us all up. afterwards, we stopped by to visit zach at 8/7, then we went over to raccoon river to play pool, which was also a rather funny endeavor considering anu is the only one who can play. tracy and i teamed up and won one, lost one. mary and dana were decently good, but anu and emily were certainly the best. we drank some delicious vanilla cream ale, which tasted like a mix between beer and cream soda. mmm.
saturday: farmer's market in the AM, hung w/anu and ryan for a bit. got my last pupusa, and it was delicious as always. david and i also go some homemade maple bacon ice cream which was oddly tasty. we savored the dogs, children, and fashion statements that can be found at the market as long as we could, and headed home around 12:30. once home, we forced ourselves to do some serious packing. around 4 we went for a run together. it was sweltering hot, but we made it about 3 miles. then david went to see his buddy josh while elizabeth and i met up over at pf changs for dinner. it was so great to catch up with her. it's good to hear all about how things are going at her church and in her life. we always have such good discussions. we then headed over to old navy and jordan creek where we were momentarily sucked in by all the trendy clothes.
now here i sit, anticipating another full day tomorrow. it's good to be so busy here before we depart... it helps me not to get so freaked out about what the heck is next. the change, the transition, the in-between is the stuff that drives me crazy. sometimes i catch myself thinking "what are we doing??" but i need to remember we feel called to do this. we feel like it is the best next step for us. we trust. and we believe that offering up a good story will bring a smile.
david and i now know that we are going to be teaching in south korea this fall. everything is finally signed, sealed, and delivered. our visas, our plane tickets, our suitcases all purchased and itching to be used. landing back in des moines was the most bittersweet feeling... such a relief to be on familiar soil and such a joy to see my dad and the cowgers, grinning wide at the baggage claim... but i felt a twinge of faltering confidence as i realized i'd be soon saying goodbye to the same people, at the same airport.
here's the breakdown of our days, worth remembering when we're far from home:
friday and saturday: saw sari and elliot in cedar falls! it was so much fun interacting with little E, and it's amazing how much he's grown in such a short while. we spent a lot of time centered around him, watching him explore and smile and shrug. took lots of pictures and enjoyed relaxing on the deck by the river.
saturday: saw kali and andy at their lovely new home in wdm. they're such incredible cooks and hosts - they made some awesome bruchetta and a delicious "meatlog". it was so great to reconnect w/them and others. their little asher is so mellow and content, as i held him he tried to eat every bead on my necklace for a good half hour. i'm so glad they're back in dsm, but so sad to be leaving right as they get back.
sunday: talked at Z about our colorado trip, and made the big announcement that we're leaving. everyone was pretty encouraging, thankfully. that evening, had girl's group at my place w/dana, mary, and tracy. always good discussion and vulnerability. i love these girls lots, and have been so grateful to have them in my life.
monday: huh. don't know what we did on monday...... ohhh wait. i do. we did our last "grill-out monday" and had yummy salmon while watching the finale of the bachelorette. we knew it would probably be our last opportunity to veg out like that for a long while. drank our "savannah dry ciders" from SA too.
tuesday: lunch w/brent, kari, and the kids at gusto pizza. delish! man, i love b & k, and i so love their kids too. it's so fun how they've become such good friends over the years. brent is like a brother to me, and i love how he and david act like middle schoolers around each other. they're a fantastic couple that we admire so much. we're gonna do our best to keep in touch w/them.
tuesday evening: ate dinner up at carlie and tony's house in ankeny. their kids micah and evitt are another couple of our faves. evitt was buddying up next to david and it was so adorable. micah had a dance party in the middle of the room for awhile to entertain us. they're such fun. jesse driver came to dinner too... and thus ensued the most i've laughed in a looooong time. gosh, he is such a fantastic, deadpan story-teller. he says the most shocking things with a straight face. he told a story about a rat in his toilet, and david was crying from laugh so hard. i wish we'd had more time to get to spend w/carlie and tony. just this summer we've started to discover what good friends they are.
wednesday: a good AM meeting w/brent and denise. in the afternoon, brent and i took some kids to a park for afternoon activities and carousel rides, then got some ice cream. it was a beautiful, summer afternoon. i took sophie up on the playground and another girl was calling her my daughter and i couldn't help thinking how fun it would be to actually be a mom, taking my kids to the playground. i know, i know, i probably see motherhood through rose-tinted glasses at the moment, but i can't wait to experience it someday.
wednesday evening: dinner at my parents, with the keller's over. it was great to reconnect with them and reminisce and relive africa. my mom made some good chicken lasagna, and we sat outside as the cicadas roared in the nearby trees. it's the most comfortable feeling in the world to sit with my family and take it all in. my dad being goofy, all hyped-up about his new blog that he's started, mom being the perfect hostess, jenalee talking about her internship - it all fills me with such sweet love. all the more knowing that i won't get to experience it for a year. if anything, i will come home so appreciative.
thursday: david's 28th birthday! he went to the IMAX harry potter movie earlier in the day w/amelia. that night, we met up w/a revolving door of friends over at wellman's pub in wdm. i think at one time or another we had jenalee, abby, anu, ryan galloway, ryan and lyndsay solomon, zach and ben anderson, seth, eric, myself and david all around a big table. later in the night, the sports switched over to cranked-up music videos, so we decided to call it a night.
friday: i had an eye appointment to finally get some new specs. in the afternoon we swung by zion to make sure our SA video would work. at 6, i met up at mary, tracy, and emily's house to determine whether or not we should go camping. it had been our original plan, but it had also been raining all day. we decided to nix the camping and instead went out to eat at open seasame (one of my faves). we met up with dana, anu, and mallory down there and i ate hummus to my heart's content. there was a belly dancer swirling around in that tiny little dive space, dancing and waving her scarves, which cracked us all up. afterwards, we stopped by to visit zach at 8/7, then we went over to raccoon river to play pool, which was also a rather funny endeavor considering anu is the only one who can play. tracy and i teamed up and won one, lost one. mary and dana were decently good, but anu and emily were certainly the best. we drank some delicious vanilla cream ale, which tasted like a mix between beer and cream soda. mmm.
saturday: farmer's market in the AM, hung w/anu and ryan for a bit. got my last pupusa, and it was delicious as always. david and i also go some homemade maple bacon ice cream which was oddly tasty. we savored the dogs, children, and fashion statements that can be found at the market as long as we could, and headed home around 12:30. once home, we forced ourselves to do some serious packing. around 4 we went for a run together. it was sweltering hot, but we made it about 3 miles. then david went to see his buddy josh while elizabeth and i met up over at pf changs for dinner. it was so great to catch up with her. it's good to hear all about how things are going at her church and in her life. we always have such good discussions. we then headed over to old navy and jordan creek where we were momentarily sucked in by all the trendy clothes.
now here i sit, anticipating another full day tomorrow. it's good to be so busy here before we depart... it helps me not to get so freaked out about what the heck is next. the change, the transition, the in-between is the stuff that drives me crazy. sometimes i catch myself thinking "what are we doing??" but i need to remember we feel called to do this. we feel like it is the best next step for us. we trust. and we believe that offering up a good story will bring a smile.
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