Long time no writing...

It's been ages since I posted to my blog, but today I gained some worthwhile perspective that is definitely worth sharing. But first, let me give a little recap of my life during, after, and presently, since Korea.

Korea was great! I can honestly say, looking back (even though things didn't turn out in the end as I had hoped) that I wouldn't change anything from my time there. It was an amazing, eye-opening experience that allowed me to explore a different culture, meet new people (some of whom changed my life) and really gain life experience and perspective. I discovered things about myself since Korea (even while I was there) that I didn't know about myself. Now, with all of that said, I'm not sure that I'd want to go back. I mean Korea is nice, but when you ask someone about traveling to Asia, Korea isn't the first country that comes to mind. My time there has given me the travel bug and if I could figure out how to get to another country, the same way I was able to get to Korea, I'd be signed up and headed out ASAP! Of all of the things I miss, from my time in Korea, I think, the lifestyle and schedule that I had are at the top of the list. I mean, I liked that I had to be at work by 9am every morning and then I worked until 5pm (or later, a lot) and then Amanda and I would make dinner or go out and run errands and see Seoul. I don't miss a lot of the Korean culture and I really don't miss the food (no rice for me!). I miss the easiness of my life and the less is more mentality that you take on when you're there. The things I thought I needed I really didn't need and the things I wanted weren't priorities either. I suppose the biggest thing I can say I took from Korea was contentment with the things that I have and a better understanding of what my needs vs. my wants really are, as well. Of everything that I was able to gain from Korea, the friendships that were forged will be forever cherished. Amanda was (is) a God-send to me and our boss Helen is a great friend who is missed daily. Amanda and I try to skype with her as often as possible but we miss her greatly. Hopefully she'll be able to make here, to the States, at the end of July...? Amanda and I are planning a great week of exploration, around the Southeast, to show Helen a bit of what America is like. Almost caught up... Upon leaving Korea I was able to take a brief vacation-first to Hawaii and then to Miami. Spending time with my Mother and Tracie and her family was amazing and perfect for where I was, at that time, in my life. Upon arriving back to Nashville, I found that I was very restless and really wasn't ready to return. It turns out that the anonymity that I disliked so greatly in Korea, was something I longed for, after I left. Having just been in Miami and Tracie in need of a good friend, as well, I packed everything up and moved down to Miami! From the moment I left I have been traveling a road of trust with God. I learned, the hard way, that planning your life out isn't very smart. When you're dead set on how you think your life should be and you don't even consider a contingency plan, God probably is going to find a way to humble you. He did and I'm humbled. But I think all of this, no I mean I know, all of this was for a reason. I don't think I could have come down to Miami with no plan and limited resources if I hadn't spent a year in Korea learning what I truly needed to survive and what was really important. As of right now, I'm living with Tracie (my oldest closest friend in the world) and my basic needs are being met. I am getting paid enough to pay my bills and cover my necessities and I can honestly say that I'm quite happy. I'm working for Tracie. She started her own company called Luvmeyoga (www.luvmeyoga.com) and while it's not what I thought I'd be doing (getting a teaching position is a lot harder that you'd think) it's a challenge for me and I'm happy. I'm trusting God. Believe me this did not come easily. Wanting to be the control freak that I am, He found a way to break me. It took the car not starting, 3 weeks after arriving (after just having some work done to it), sitting in a preschool parking lot, for met to finally have an out-loud conversation with God, that basically went something like this: "Ok God, fine you can have all of the control you want! I'm done!" Turns out once you relinquish that control and start praying for God to just do as He will with you and start asking for the blessings that He wants to give you He will indeed bless you. Along with those blessings He'll always make sure that you stay humble and aware of what's going on around you and always make sure that you receive a daily dose of perspective. I suppose that brings us current and my daily dose came today, when I volunteered at a homeless shelter, in downtown Miami.

Today I say a side of homelessness that I never anticipated. I mean, we see homeless people whenever we go downtown (whether it's Nashville, NYC, ATL or Miami). It's prevalent-especially in the last few years since the recession started taking its toll on this country. Today, though I didn't see the usual face of homelessness-the dirty individual on the corner, begging for food. I saw black people, white people, latinos, teenagers, middle-aged, elderly and handicapped all faced with a lack of shelter and a lack of nourishment. Homelessness is such a generalization. What I saw today weren't just people who lived on the streets. I saw people who work so hard to make ends meet that at the end of the day, after their rent and utilities have been paid they don't have enough to feed themselves or their family and they have to come down to the local shelter to eat. Talk about humility. Of course there's another side to homelessness too. There's the vulgarity of it all and the jadedness that comes from not catching any breaks and being on the streets and never having anything. It's understandable how these peoples' spirits can be so broken; with that said, it is interesting to me that they can be picky and ungrateful for the food that is being given to them. When you don't know where your next meal is coming from, it's probably not the best idea to complain about what is being served. The negativity that was heard certainly didn't outweigh the positive, grateful attitudes of those walking through kitchen line though. It was truly an eye-opening afternoon that brought me to tears as soon as I got into my car. I mean, even though, it is so easy to become bogged down by the troubles that each of our lives has, when you take a look around at the beautiful home and comfy bed that you have or the delicious meal that is put in front of you, by mom or wife, or the fact that we have so many other extravagances in our lives (i.e. iPhone, computer, car, vacations, etc.) how often do we just take time to thank Christ for the blessings he has bestowed upon us? A couple of years ago, one of my friends (Gail or Deb) bought me a copy of a devotional called "Jesus Calling" and it has little 5 minute readings, as though being spoken by Jesus, and they give you reminders to thank or give it to Christ no matter what the issue. The other day I read that I should thank God for even my troubles-"Thank Me in the Midst of the Crucible!"-how powerful to think that we should be thanking Him for our troubles? Regardless of why we're giving thanks or asking for strength, perseverance, humility or trust, there is comfort knowing that all of the obstacles and blessings that have been put in our lives were put there for a reason-a reason most assuredly that is to lead us back to God!

Upon my return from Korea I have become a different person. I practice yoga, I pray, a lot, and I meditate. I don't think many of my friends back home have ever heard me say these things before. Please do not think that I am free from anxieties, because I do have my moments, but I try to remain conscious of the fact that compared to many I have a very charmed and blessed life and so therefore I have no complaints.

P.S. I'll try to update more often...

Things that can only happen to me...

The last couple of weeks my friends and I have been having a good time-too good of a time-that's up for debate, but a good time nonetheless. We've been hanging out in Hongdae and enjoying the nite life. Unfortunately I was the victim of a credit card robbery and have had to deal with the inconvenient consequences of said robbery. All I'll say in regards to that is that we should all be thankful for the banks and their policies in the States-it isn't the same here. While this experience was completely unfortunate I have ventured back out since.

As many of my friends and family know, I tend to get into weird situations or meet very interesting people and this past weekend was not exception. Friday nite started out like any other Friday nite, out with the girls...we arrived in Hongdae and immediately started dancing and enjoying the beautiful nite. At some point during the evening I met the most interesting guy-Ryan- who had just arrived in Korea the day before. He's younger than I am but has lived a life that I would love to live. He's really quite inspirational. After having spent some time with him over the weekend I want to go travel the world and have my entire life down to a backpack. If I hadn't met him this last Friday I probably wouldn't have met this other guy. Actually this other guy I'd kind of met prior to our meeting on Sunday evening....I'm not going to mention his name but I was at dinner with him, my new friend Ryan, another teacher they work with and my friend Tammy joined us. Dinner was entertaining to say the least, especially after I determined and "guy with no name", confirmed that he was in fact the dude who had stripped down and showered at the outdoor shower at the Hamilton Hotel, a week or two before. The same guy who approached my table, in the bar area, and asked the people I was with for a cigarette. The moment I realized and he confirmed was priceless. His one friend was completely unaware of the incident and I think, "guy with no name", didn't want his friend to know but once the cat was out of the bag it was sooooo funny. He told me that he showered naked, on a dare. Throughout the evening we would all be talking and then all of the sudden one of us would say, "I can't believe you were at the Hamilton Hotel that day", or "I can't believe that was you, at the Hamilton Hotel that day". It was pretty bizarre and only something that could happen to me-I mean, while there are a good amount of foreigners in Seoul, Seoul is a large city and the odds of running into someone again are kind of slim-I guess it really is a small world. Regardless, the weekend was crazy fun and completely out of the blue.

Catching Up

The month of June is already half over and already the summer is off to a bang! I've experienced one of the mildest Junes ever (in my life) and really love having four distinct seasons. Life in Seoul is good...I've been enjoying the nite life and making new friends. The one thing I'm not enjoying is the fact that there are only a couple of pools open, in the Seoul area, and the others have yet to open (maybe in the next week or two..?). A couple of weeks ago I ventured back to Itaewon (even though I insist that I'm never going back there) to lay out at the pool at the Hamilton Hotel. I had been told by many foreigners that the public was allowed use of pool and so on the the first sunny Saturday, I had available, I made my way to the pool. I arrived at the pool, mid-afternoon, not quite sure what to expect, but when I arrived at the pool it was nothing I ever expected. It was packed with foreigners and Koreans alike, all in pursuit of the perfect tan and socialization with other foreigners and English speakers (and lets not forget the rum...no pool or beach experience would be complete without it). I arrived too late in the day to find a chair to lay out on, but was lucky enough to run into an acquaintance that I had met a few weeks previously. He was nice enough to offer me a seat with his group and I enjoyed the remainder of the afternoon with him and his friends. I had a great time but in true "Jenn's Life" fashion, the craziest thing occurred a few feet away from us... All throughout the day, as the Korean swimmers finished their day at the pool, they would come and shower off in the outdoor shower, located near us, in the bar area. It wasn't so weird that they were lathering up, in their bathing suits, after being at the pool, all day, what was weird was the last guy who showered that afternoon that decided he was going to shower completely naked, in public, in the bar area, with not a care in the world. At first, I was the only one of my group that noticed this man, just feet from us, showering naked, and then I looked at my friend and he looked at me and he and I just looked at each other with very perplexed looks on our faces. The dude showering was completely unaware of how inappropriate his actions were and if he was, he didn't care-very ballsy. As his shower ends and he's drying off (and not in a hurry at all) one of the bartenders approaches him and tells him that it's inappropriate for him to naked in public, in the bar, at the pool and both then ensue in a banter over whose "package" is bigger and better. This conversation between both men continued with the Korean bartender telling the man, who by the way was an American, that if he compared his package to the American's, the American would be upset and cry; meanwhile the American is calling out the Korean bartender and telling him he needs to just whip it out. It was hilarious! As if that wasn't enough, the American decided to come over and ask one of the members of the group I was with for a cigarette. He was denied on the sheer fact that he wasn't wearing any pants-it was the principle of the matter. Several minutes later, he approached us again and we finally obliged him with one, but only because he was wearing pants this time. This kind of stuff only happens around me. My life is entertaining to say the least. Since then I have not been back to the Hamilton Hotel pool; not because of the naked guy but unfortunately, the weather on the weekends hasn't been ideal pool weather.

My two close friends Amanda and Tammy and I have been spending a lot of time in Hongdae, enjoying the nite life and dancing-gotta love the summer time! School is going well, the children are speaking more and more English everyday and we're having a great time outside, enjoying the nice weather before it's too rainy to be outside.

Homesick

It's June! I can't believe it! Four months has flown by and it's finally the Summer time. I've made it through a quarter of the year so the rest should be easy....!? I'm not sure if it's the fact that I made the trip home, in early May, or if it's because it's the Summer time (and I love the Summer time-being with friends/family) but I'm severly homesick. I miss my family so much and I miss my nephew and hanging at the pool with Laura and Jaydon and Danielle and going to Mafiozzas, with Carrie, on Tuesdays and seeing my parents and all of the kids I babysit...oh and going to the lake-I have way too much fun at the lake with the Cornelius', Gags, Moores and Rossi families! I don't regret going home when I did-it was great seeing everyone, I was able to see, but I can't help but feeling like I'm missing out on my life, in Nashville. I told my mom, the other day, that I miss home so much, that I can't even listen to country music, right now. It's almost painful talking to my parents and sister and nephew. I want to tell them everything that's going on here and hear about what's going on there but it's hard. Seoul is great and I'm still enjoying it...the weather's been beautiful so it's allowed me and my friends here to get out more and enjoy the city. I'm hoping to take a few trips to SouthEast Asia, over the next several months (before I leave) and make the most of my time here. School is going well and the children are starting to show signs of improvement and growth-it's always encouraging to see that you're making a difference!
Monsoon season is approaching...I'm not quite sure what to expect, other than torrential down pours! I hope my wellies are on their way...(mother)? As I write this I'm hearing thunder-the first of which I've heard since I arrived here, in January. Spring and Summer in Seoul are proving to be wonderful time-It's been a while since I've experienced real seasons, as oppossed to the back and forth that Nashville experiences during the Winter/Spring time. In my neighborhood there are open markets everyday and everyone is out until late at nite; enjoying as much as they can of the beautiful weather, before it becomes so humid, it's unbearable. The humidity, here, is supposed to be much worse than what I'm even used to, having come from the South! Wherever there's an open market, there are mounds and mounds of garlic. I've never seen so many stalks/cloves of garlic before-it's crazy! And since the warm weather is here, I've been wearing my Summer clothes, which have prompted more stares, than I was receiving before. It's not that they don't approve of my apperal (although, they may not be used to the bright colors I wear) but rather they love my white skin. It's really weird. Koreans love white skin and all I can think about is how I'm going to lay out the first opportunity I get. My Korean friend has told me that I shouldn't lay out, because my white skin is so beautiful. Thanks, but I'd rather get my tan, during the Summer. Here in Korea, and I may have explained this before, white skin is associated with wealth; whereas tan skin is associated with the working (farming) class. They put whitening cream in everything here, so they can appear lighter skinned than they really are.
I can honestly say that I feel completely adjusted to Korea. I've found so many foreign markets that I can buy imported (western) foods. I've even discovered that one of the foreign bookstores here, will allow you to subscribe to American magazines, so they can be delivered to my address here! The other foreign teachers, and myself, disoverd an EMart (like Target) just down the road from us, that doesn't require us to take a bus and can be easily walked to and the cab ride there/back is super cheap! Life is good, but I miss everyone at home terribly! Anyone up for a trip to S. Korea?

Rants

I'm not sure if it's the fact that I'm on the other side of the world or if it's the blatant fact that the American government is in ruins, but I've become enthralled in politics. I miss it, actually. I haven't actually missed politics since I came home from D.C. and the players decided to become partisan protagonists' with their own agendas, but nonetheless, the train wreck that has become our country captivates me. I know that seems harsh, but what happened to the country our Founding Father's fought so gallantly to establish? Obviously the world has changed quite a bit since the mid to late 18th century, but aren't the ideals, supposedly, supposed to be the same? Aren't we supposed to be "the Greatest Country" in the world? Did we not fight for the Bill of Rights? As I read the news, I cringe as I see that little by little each and everyone one of our rights is being threatened. It seems as though the livelihood of the American people is being threatened with an out of control budget and the "left" feeling threatened to the point that they're proposing and backing legislation that could threaten the free speech rights of those that don't agree with the current administration. I wonder too, does everyone think that allowing the government to have so much control, over everything, will actually solve anything? The government has a hard enough time over-sighting the government, let alone, making sure that it can be a health care provider too. The governments bailing out corporations, lending establishments, with money, they don't have, so they're in a sense do the exact same thing that the previously mentioned enterprises engaged in, and yet because they're the government, it's okay-there's irony for you. Why can't we as American citizens, understand that for the government to work efficiently it has to work at the local level and then the state level. The federal government exists only at the leisure of the states. Why is it too, that the American people refuse to get involved, whether it's voting or volunteering, and yet are so quick to blame the government for not solving their problems. This democracy was founded on the basic concept of community and everyone participating. I'm not a fan of Hilary, and this is maybe one of the most over-quoted phrases of the 1990s but "it (does) take a village". The concept of community participation is what democracy is all about, not just voting but for all aspects of life. If we can't effectively keep our communities together and teach our children how to participate, how do we expect our country to survive? I'm part of the small percentage of people that feels our country is heading in the wrong direction. I'm anxious to get back to the States. While I'm enjoying my time abroad I feel completely useless during this heightened political time-we have a new POTUS and a democratic majority in Congress. I want to get involved but am obviously at a loss, and yet, while I wish I were there to get involved and participate more, I'm glad I'm in another country, so that I can avoid our country's messy politics. I think I feel that way because I'm scared of where the U.S. is headed. One more thing... Why do we, American people, put up with the medias tactics of scaring us into believing the world is coming to an end (okay maybe not that extreme, but close enough) due to a flu bug? And while it may be a threatening virus, the CDC has stated that it's treatable via the same drugs that are used when treating a normal flu virus. Why do we stand for this outrageous melancholy to invade or headlines and TV’s? I realize that a lot of people are completely unaware of this nice little ability; we have, called common sense, but start using it! Wash your hands and stop buying into the hype!

Too much running?

Shortly after I moved here, I started really running. Running has become my outlet for getting rid of all of the pent up stuff that builds up throughout the day of working with children and having to listen to Korean and not being able to communicate with Koreans. I'm thoroughly enjoying my runs and I apparently was a little to aggressive and too ambitious, because, about a month ago, I ran around 7-10 miles, one evening, without properly building up to that mileage. That's not a good thing to do, as I am now suffering from hip tendonitis and haven't been able to run for the last week and still have another week to go before I can start running again. The orthopedist here (he happens to practice right across the street from my apt.-how convenient?), even told me no yoga, which I was really starting to get into, until next week as well. I'm so bummed and bored! I usually run 2-4 times a week and instead I've been watching tv-ughhhhhh-Korean tv sucks-obviously because it's in Korean! Besides my hip, all is well...Spring has arrived and it's beautiful here!

Easter Sunday

Easter was very different this year. Mainly because I was away from my family and in America, Easter is one of those big holidays, throughout the year, religious or not, that most people come together to have family time. Here they don't commercialize Easter, at all. So there wasn't any build up to it. It didn't feel like Easter because I wasn't constantly reminded that it was coming up. This is shallow, but I didn't have a new Easter dress this year, and when I arrived at church everyone was severely dressed down, including me. The service was good and that should be all that matters, but I'm so used to seeing everyone so dressed up on Easter Sunday and the little girls with their new white shoes and the women with their hats, it just wasn't the same. I didn't have a traditional Easter dinner. They don't really do that here. There was no brunch to attend or dinner to look forward to-I had mondoo, a Korean dish, for dinner that evening. It was different. I was told by a person, at church, that if I thought Easter was a let down, just wait for Christmas-it's even worse! When it comes down to it though, Easter isn't about all the above mentioned things, it's about the eternal life we've been given through Christ's death and resurrection and for that I am eternally thankful!