Oh what a year...

I'll be leaving Korea on Tuesday! I can't believe as of Sunday I've been here for a WHOLE YEAR! How did I survive?

ONLY (and I mean ONLY) by the GRACE of my LORD and SAVIOR JESUS CHRIST.

This experience wouldn't make sense any other way...and it would be completely devoid of the life-altering meaning that it now carries. This year wasn't a job, it wasn't a trip and it CERTAINLY wasn't a vacation (haha).

It was a MISSION.

Korea refuses to leave you unchanged; it demands adaptation, perseverance, flexibility and humility. I feel so different than when I started. As much as I came to carve out a life for myself here in the big city, it was God who carved me into someone who is more me than I've ever been.

Whereas I used to brace myself, panic-stricken, in the back of the cab for the inevitable result of my driver's seeming "recklessness", I now shout at him "Ajoshi! Ka juseyo! Bali bali!" which means "Old man (polite term)! Drive! Hurry hurry!"

Whereas I used to go white with fear at the mere prospect of having to communicate with someone who most certainly didn't speak English, I now understand that, just like spiders, they're probably just as scared of me as I am of them. And I realized that a little humility goes a long way.

Whereas I used to turn up my nose at the mere idea of "fermented cabbage", I now eat kimchi like its going out of style, and seriously fear for my digestive system's health without it.

Whereas I used to "know" that God was with me, I have spent the last year learning that He is always there.

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." ~ James 1:2-4

To my new Seoul family, to my church, to my students, to my fellow teachers and co-workers, to those who have helped me, encouraged me, taught me, corrected me, loved me -

I will miss you so much. I love you and I'll see you again, perhaps in more beautiful world than this one.

To Korea -

Kamsa hamnida ^.^ Jeonun chamchi kimbap eol joa hamnida. Mashi sseumnida.