Goodbye Korea, Hello World

Hey everyone,

As you know, my time in Korea has finally ended - after a whirlwind weekend goodbye session I've spent the past two days in Hong Kong, and will head to China tomorrow. For the next three months, my journey will take me from China all the way down to Australia, ending with a stop in Fiji before my flight back to the states. I'm expecting to arrive the day before Thanksgiving after two years and four months away from home. 

Last week and weekend I tried to spend as much time with my friends as possible, and we spent much of our time reminiscing about our memories from Korea. I've had so many more experiences, learned so much more about the world, and seen more places than I could have ever imagined I would when I first came to Korea. Each trip, each weekend, each place has wonderful memories that will remain with me forever. 

A question that I've been thinking lately is this: what or who has influenced me the most during my time in Korea? As important as the traveling, the studying, the exploring, and the teaching has been, I don't think I would be who I am today without my friends in Korea. I've met such a wide variety of interesting, kind, caring, inspiring, and loyal people here, and I feel so lucky to have crossed paths and connected with them. As I've said before, when you live in such an isolated community of expats, your friends here truly become your family. They're the ones you turn to, who understand, who listen, and who can give advice. They're also the ones you create some of the best memories with, ones that will extend far beyond Korea, with people that you know you'll see again in the future, no matter what country they're from. 

For my friends alone, Korea has been the best experience ever, but of course there are so many other factors that have made my life here better than I ever dreamed of. My school has been kind, generous, and accommodating to me, and really, it's my coworkers and students that I've  spent the most time with out here. 

I have to thank my coteachers (JuAe on my left) who became like family to me, and were such great role models for me to observe and learn from. I also have to thank my coworkers (this feels like an Oscars speech,) and all of the other teachers and staff members, who always made sure I was called over to the treat table and  included in the walk to lunch. 

But really, I think the people that I most have to thank are my students, for accepting me, for respecting me, and for helping me become a better teacher. I cherish every little conversation and high five that I've shared with one of my kids, for that was our way of making a connection and building a relationship. Leaving them was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do, and I know I'll be thinking about them for a long time. Everything else: Korea's beauty, the culture, the food, the simple way of life, the possibilities for travel and exploring, have added so much to the incredible life I've lived here, and they deserve mention for contributing to my happiness.

Looking forward, I have a really big year coming up, as I continue to follow my dreams of backpacking from Asia to Australia, then head back to North America for some much needed home time. After that I'll be heading to South America for about three months before ending my travel year with a summer in South Africa. In my twenty fourth year I think I'll hit about twenty four different countries. Beyond that, my future will be determined by boards of reviewers and judges who will either accept or deny my applications for a Fulbright Spain teaching grant and then graduate school. We'll see what happens.

I attended church this past Sunday for the last time at the International Lutheran Church in Seoul. Pastor Steve led a wonderful service, as usual, but something about this Sunday seemed extra special. Whether it was because my friend Maggie (from Mankato!) was there with me, whether Pastor Steve included me in the prayers for my upcoming journey, whether all of the worship songs at the service were my favorites, or even whether I was running on about three hours of sleep, I'll never know what made it so special, but I do know the cover of the bulletin definitely had something to do with it:

No matter what life will bring in the future, and no matter how many plans I continue to compulsively make, one of the most important things I've learned from my time in Korea is that all I can do is enjoy and love every moment. 

Live in the moment, live like you're dying, live your dream. 

See you in November, Minnesota! Best wishes to you all for a wonderful rest of your summer and start to the fall!