In about four hours I will drag my two stuffed suitcases through campus to meet the bus that will take me and some of my colleagues to the airport. Granted, my flight doesn't leave until 6:30pm so I'll have a LOT of extra time to kill at Incheon Airport, but I get a free (monetarily and stress-wise) ride to the airport. This trip I am not traveling alone--there will be six SFSers making the trip to Portland! Our flight across the Pacific will last somewhere around eleven hours before landing in Vancouver, BC. Here's the part that gets stressful...we then have EXACTLY one hour and five minutes to go through customs, recheck our luggage, board our flight to Portland, and get the plane off the ground. Yikes! I'm praying that today goes without a hitch and by Saturday at 2:30pm I'll be saying hello to mom and dad at PDX. Want to know something really fun?! I land in Portland on December 18th a full 4 hours before I departed from Seoul (on December 18th). Yay for crossing the international dateline!
After a super busy first semester, I'm hoping for a restful and relaxing break...but I know my best laid plans will soon be jam packed with activities, catching up with friends, and wedding preparations for Erin's New Year's Eve nuptials. With so many things going on around me I've found it difficult to recognize that it is indeed Christmastime. Sure, I've done some shopping (Insa-dong is my absolute favorite shopping spot in Seoul for Korean style gifts), attended the Christmas concert (have I told you how talented my students are?), and put up a few twinkle lights in the window. Finally on Wednesday night, I caught the spirit of the season. Two other new teachers organized a secret Santa gift exchange, so for the last week I've been giving and receiving little gifties. On Wednesday all of the ladies who participated gathered for the big reveal and it was so much fun! The person I was giving gifts to figured me out a couple of days before (wouldn't you know I drew the other Miss James at SFS) and I narrowed my secret Santa down to two. Ashley turned out to be the elf in question and each day she blessed me with a fun gift and clue, written all in rhyme. I hope we continue this tradition next year! Well, I have a few exams to finish grading and a bit of packing and cleaning up to do before I can take my trip across the ocean, so off I go. I'll write and post more about my trip home soon! Merry Christmas to everyone reading!
Saturday, December 18, 2010
Sunday, December 5, 2010
Finding Joy...
My friends who have lived overseas warned me before the big move that my experiences living abroad would be filled with ups and downs--they were absolutely spot on! Last night's faculty Christmas Party was definitely a high! I found a really cute dress to wear at the last minute, got all dressed up, and joined my fellow SFSers at the Grand Hilton for a night of celebrating! We caroled, we ate, and we DANCED! Even though I'm kind of a spaz on the dance floor (yep, no dancing skills here people) I had so much fun kicking off my shoes and cutting loose with the rest of my daring colleagues. The single ladies sure know how to have a good time! It was a late night and even later until the wave of exhaustion hit me.
I let myself sleep in this morning and didn't wake up until nearly 11am. As soon as I climbed out of bed I was hit with a wave of panic as I started to think about all of the things I need to accomplish today! As I sit at my computer I am surrounded by piles of laundry needing some attention, I can see the pile of ungraded posters sitting on my living room floor, and I am haunted by the fact that I still have planning to do for this week. Plus, I have to go to school and re-enter EVERY grade from the start of the school year into my electronic gradebook because three of my classes were named incorrectly at the start of the school year. What a fiasco. There are not enough hours in the day! The thing is, I don't want to do any of it. I want to pack my suitcase, get on the plane, and forget about school for awhile. I want to give up the responsibilities of adulthood and return to the simple life of....oh, I don't know what. How about just wanting a life that is simple? I can obviously recognize that I have a problem letting go of the small things, thus I end up with a stress mess. Sigh.....
Putting off my school work isn't helping, so it's time to get working!
 |
| A few of the "single ladies"...me, Kristen, Jenny (also Miss James), and Misty |
 |
| Me with the Christmas tree |
 |
| The incredible cover band of teachers--way to go Ruth, Paul, Pam, Marion, and Ryan! |
 |
| Misty and Allison |
 |
| The Miss James' dancing the night away |
 |
| Ashley (who is pregnant with twin girls) and Kristen busting a move! |
 |
| Kyla, Kristen, and Allison |
I let myself sleep in this morning and didn't wake up until nearly 11am. As soon as I climbed out of bed I was hit with a wave of panic as I started to think about all of the things I need to accomplish today! As I sit at my computer I am surrounded by piles of laundry needing some attention, I can see the pile of ungraded posters sitting on my living room floor, and I am haunted by the fact that I still have planning to do for this week. Plus, I have to go to school and re-enter EVERY grade from the start of the school year into my electronic gradebook because three of my classes were named incorrectly at the start of the school year. What a fiasco. There are not enough hours in the day! The thing is, I don't want to do any of it. I want to pack my suitcase, get on the plane, and forget about school for awhile. I want to give up the responsibilities of adulthood and return to the simple life of....oh, I don't know what. How about just wanting a life that is simple? I can obviously recognize that I have a problem letting go of the small things, thus I end up with a stress mess. Sigh.....
Putting off my school work isn't helping, so it's time to get working!
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Fight or Flight...
It feels like I haven't sat down to write in awhile, so I'll continue procrastinating on the planning of tomorrow's lessons by blogging about the happenings in Seoul over the last two weeks. I have finally reached the settling in point where I feel less like a tourist and more like a resident in this city. Although much of the massive city is still unknown to me, I have been less inclined to go out exploring during my evening and weekend time and more inclined to enjoy down time.
With this notion of "down time" fresh in mind, I was really looking forward to the four day weekend that came with Thanksgiving (one of the many blessings about working at an international school--we get to celebrate American and Korean holidays). I had planned nothing other than rest and relaxation for the long weekend and that's exactly what I did--I didn't even eat turkey! I did, however, thoroughly enjoy sleeping in, getting a much needed haircut, shopping for clothes, having my first massage (who knew you could store so much tension in your shoulders?, getting a manicure and pedicure, watching movies, and reading. Simple pleasures....ahhhhh!
On a more serious note, literally the day before Thanksgiving we got word that North Korea had shelled a South Korean island. The news reports called this attack one of the worst since the armistice treaty halting the Korean War was signed. Amazingly enough, I didn't feel the sense of panic or fear that I first expected. Instead, I experienced a deep sense of sadness--the kind that makes you shake your head and wonder if Kim Jong Il has even a shred of humanity in him. Didn't we just go through this in March with the sinking of the South Korean ship?! That incident definitely caused a bit of concern, but it was easy to distance myself from the real implications since I was still living half a world away.
Now, I am personally invested in this place and the people here. I don't want to be forced to leave my students and colleagues. I don't want to leave this city that is becoming my new home. Mostly, I don't want to imagine the extent of human suffering that occurs when a nation is at war. In the stress of the situation, the "What If's" have started to come to the surface..."What if North Korea follows through with their threats of increased violence?"..."What if the two countries go to war?"..."What if I can't get out of here if things get bad?"...and the worst of all, "What if North Korea drops a nuclear bomb on Seoul?" After visiting Hiroshima this fall and seeing the effects of nuclear weapons up close, I cannot think of anything worse.
Presently we (the teachers) all chatter about the rumblings between the two countries in the staff room and talk with students whose parents work for the embassy or are in the military with the hope of setting our minds at ease. We rationalize our own thinking by commenting on how stupid North Korea would have to be to do anything, we discuss the imminent demise of North Korea should they attack--and then we wake up and realize that nothing happening in North Korea is rational and the cycle is set in motion again. For the record, if I happen to witness an atomic bomb heading my direction I will follow the urging of my brother to run for the center so I can ensure immediate vaporization rather than risk the possibility of a tortured survival laced with the after-effects of radiation. This is one of those instances where I am certain I would be ready to meet my maker!
At this point I have seen only a few students and their families decide to abandon ship, so to speak, but the rest of us will remain and carry on. All we can really do now is pray that diplomacy, sense, and goodness prevail. I hope it will.
With this notion of "down time" fresh in mind, I was really looking forward to the four day weekend that came with Thanksgiving (one of the many blessings about working at an international school--we get to celebrate American and Korean holidays). I had planned nothing other than rest and relaxation for the long weekend and that's exactly what I did--I didn't even eat turkey! I did, however, thoroughly enjoy sleeping in, getting a much needed haircut, shopping for clothes, having my first massage (who knew you could store so much tension in your shoulders?, getting a manicure and pedicure, watching movies, and reading. Simple pleasures....ahhhhh!
On a more serious note, literally the day before Thanksgiving we got word that North Korea had shelled a South Korean island. The news reports called this attack one of the worst since the armistice treaty halting the Korean War was signed. Amazingly enough, I didn't feel the sense of panic or fear that I first expected. Instead, I experienced a deep sense of sadness--the kind that makes you shake your head and wonder if Kim Jong Il has even a shred of humanity in him. Didn't we just go through this in March with the sinking of the South Korean ship?! That incident definitely caused a bit of concern, but it was easy to distance myself from the real implications since I was still living half a world away.
Now, I am personally invested in this place and the people here. I don't want to be forced to leave my students and colleagues. I don't want to leave this city that is becoming my new home. Mostly, I don't want to imagine the extent of human suffering that occurs when a nation is at war. In the stress of the situation, the "What If's" have started to come to the surface..."What if North Korea follows through with their threats of increased violence?"..."What if the two countries go to war?"..."What if I can't get out of here if things get bad?"...and the worst of all, "What if North Korea drops a nuclear bomb on Seoul?" After visiting Hiroshima this fall and seeing the effects of nuclear weapons up close, I cannot think of anything worse.
Presently we (the teachers) all chatter about the rumblings between the two countries in the staff room and talk with students whose parents work for the embassy or are in the military with the hope of setting our minds at ease. We rationalize our own thinking by commenting on how stupid North Korea would have to be to do anything, we discuss the imminent demise of North Korea should they attack--and then we wake up and realize that nothing happening in North Korea is rational and the cycle is set in motion again. For the record, if I happen to witness an atomic bomb heading my direction I will follow the urging of my brother to run for the center so I can ensure immediate vaporization rather than risk the possibility of a tortured survival laced with the after-effects of radiation. This is one of those instances where I am certain I would be ready to meet my maker!
At this point I have seen only a few students and their families decide to abandon ship, so to speak, but the rest of us will remain and carry on. All we can really do now is pray that diplomacy, sense, and goodness prevail. I hope it will.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
