Saturday, October 24
Dordt Blades
I went to a hockey game last night: Dordt Blades vs Calvin Knights. Justin and I bet dinner on the game against two of our seminary friends who attended Calvin College. Calvin was very smooth. Their passing was crisp. They moved as a cohesive unit and filled open space. 12 minutes into the first period the Knights seemed to have their broad sword firmly placed against the neck of the defenseless Blades. 4-0 home team. It did get better, but not much. Dordt lost 8-3. It looks like Justin and I will be cooking a delicious vegan meal in the near future.
Thursday, October 23
Cali to Barista!
First of all, i'm not sure if anyone will read this now that I'm back in the US and accessible more easily by phone (515-402-9325). But if anyone is interested, I'll throw out a little update.
Since arriving back in the US a few days shy of 2 months ago, I've seen California, the Hoover Dam, Las Vegas, and the Grand Canyon all for the first time! Pretty amazing. I also went to my first country concert: Luke Bryan and Josh Turner! For someone who isn't too enthusiastic about country music, I really enjoyed the concert! I've also moved into my first apartment with a lease and bought my first matress. Fun stuff!
And now, I am a barista at Starbucks! Yep, I work at Starbucks. How is it? Very mixed. It's fun learning how to make all of the drinks and often fun doing it; but today I started at 5am and was busy making drinks non-stop from 6:30-9:45: not too fun! But, so far it has been a good experience and my boss and coworkers are really great, so that helps a lot.
If you're ever on I235 and going by the 73rd street exit, you might want to consider taking that exit and stopping in for an amazing beverage! :)
Since arriving back in the US a few days shy of 2 months ago, I've seen California, the Hoover Dam, Las Vegas, and the Grand Canyon all for the first time! Pretty amazing. I also went to my first country concert: Luke Bryan and Josh Turner! For someone who isn't too enthusiastic about country music, I really enjoyed the concert! I've also moved into my first apartment with a lease and bought my first matress. Fun stuff!
And now, I am a barista at Starbucks! Yep, I work at Starbucks. How is it? Very mixed. It's fun learning how to make all of the drinks and often fun doing it; but today I started at 5am and was busy making drinks non-stop from 6:30-9:45: not too fun! But, so far it has been a good experience and my boss and coworkers are really great, so that helps a lot.
If you're ever on I235 and going by the 73rd street exit, you might want to consider taking that exit and stopping in for an amazing beverage! :)
Monday, August 25
Beautiful Good-Byes!
The past four days have been filled with crazy fun as I've been trying to see people, eat dinner with people, and have fun in Korea one last time with good friends. I have eaten a ton of really amazing meals, I've played some really fun games of ping-pong and bowling, went to a wild dance club, and stayed up to watch the sunrise! It's always a little sad to say good-bye, but I'm really thankful that I have these wonderful people in my life from this past year in Korea. The joy and friendship that they have brought me and the hope of seeing some of them again makes these good-byes beautiful.
Amelie!
Amy and I dominating on the alley!
Janie, Amelie, and Gary bought me a sweet North Face man bag for a going away gift!
At the dance club with Jen!
Joseph, Gary, Justin, and I went out for an awesome dinner at the outback! Yes, Justin, Gary, and I are wearing the same shirt. Couple t-shirts are really popular in Korea so we decided to get triplet tees. :)
The love was felt at the dance club, even though Justin and I might be worse at dancing than we were at guitar! :)
A beautiful sunrise over the ocean, captured from our apartment window overlooking Yeong-do. I'll miss the view.
Amelie!
Amy and I dominating on the alley!
Janie, Amelie, and Gary bought me a sweet North Face man bag for a going away gift!
At the dance club with Jen!
Joseph, Gary, Justin, and I went out for an awesome dinner at the outback! Yes, Justin, Gary, and I are wearing the same shirt. Couple t-shirts are really popular in Korea so we decided to get triplet tees. :)
The love was felt at the dance club, even though Justin and I might be worse at dancing than we were at guitar! :)
A beautiful sunrise over the ocean, captured from our apartment window overlooking Yeong-do. I'll miss the view.
Sunday, August 17
Saying Good-bye, Saying Hello
In 10 days I’ll be leaving Korea and arriving in the US—367 days after arriving in Busan. As I prepare to leave this place, I am experiencing many different thoughts and emotions: sadness to leave many wonderful people, sorrow to leave Justin, confusion about what I exactly did this last year, joy to see many loved ones in the US, excitement to be near Jenni after a year of phone calls and distance, and uncertainty about what exactly I will do this next year.
I also have been thinking back on many of the joys and frustrations of this past year. Living in another culture really is an adventure; but it’s often a jungle of confusion in which you feel lost among the different customs and an unfamiliar language. And believe it or not, contrary to what many people think, living abroad is often boring. It can be difficult to do things, or even find out what there is to do. There aren’t a lot of friends around to call all the time, especially on the weekends in Korea: everyone’s in church! And then living abroad can be lonely.
Justin and I have discovered that we know many people, but other than one friend, no one really knows us. There are many familiar faces and people who are friends, but not many friends whom you can deeply discuss thoughts, confusions, feelings, and ideas with. And then the loneliness can be increased when many of your friends and those whom you love in the US have somewhat disappeared from your life; never calling you and rarely emailing. It can be frustrating to have to always be the one to call. And I know that’s just how life goes; you make friends and then you grow apart. I am extremely thankful that Justin and I were here together, it really made life a lot better.
But enough of the frustrations, there are countless more joys. The main joy, other than Justin, has been Gary. Gary has been a wonderful friend whom I will dearly miss when I return to the United States. We have had many hilarious nights when Gary has slept over at our apartment, or when we were hanging out in the city. One time he was giving directions to some tourists; he was directing them to the beach but was afraid of mispronouncing “beach” as “bitch”. So, instead he said “be-och”, not knowing that it happened to be the “hip” pronunciation of “bitch”. Gary was embarrassed, but us and the tourists had a good laugh. :)
Another joy has been our numerous friends from Cambodia, Kenya, Thailand, the Philippines, and of course Korea. Though the depth of the relationships hasn’t been great, I have learned so much from them about the world and the beautiful variety of cultures and people. Their joy and laughter will remain in my heart and memory for many years.
I also have loved the food in Korea! It’s so good! From rotten cabbage mixed with rice, to dog soup, to seaweed wrapped rice! OK, I know that doesn’t sound good, but it is!!
Traveling has been another huge plus. On top of Korea, seeing Japan, Cambodia, Thailand, and the Philippines was incredible. It was so eye-opening to see the variety of ways of life, so challenging to encounter different life philosophies and cultural differences, so heart-breaking to see the poverty in many of the places, and so incredibly moving to see the beauty of God’s world and the greater beauty of the people he has placed in it. Though from hundreds of countries with thousands of different cultures and subcultures, we are all human and all God’s image bearers. It’s beautiful to see and experience in so many places.
Yeah, this year has been an amazing experience full of both sorrows and joys; and that is what I feel as the end nears: sorrow and joy.
I also have been thinking back on many of the joys and frustrations of this past year. Living in another culture really is an adventure; but it’s often a jungle of confusion in which you feel lost among the different customs and an unfamiliar language. And believe it or not, contrary to what many people think, living abroad is often boring. It can be difficult to do things, or even find out what there is to do. There aren’t a lot of friends around to call all the time, especially on the weekends in Korea: everyone’s in church! And then living abroad can be lonely.
Justin and I have discovered that we know many people, but other than one friend, no one really knows us. There are many familiar faces and people who are friends, but not many friends whom you can deeply discuss thoughts, confusions, feelings, and ideas with. And then the loneliness can be increased when many of your friends and those whom you love in the US have somewhat disappeared from your life; never calling you and rarely emailing. It can be frustrating to have to always be the one to call. And I know that’s just how life goes; you make friends and then you grow apart. I am extremely thankful that Justin and I were here together, it really made life a lot better.
But enough of the frustrations, there are countless more joys. The main joy, other than Justin, has been Gary. Gary has been a wonderful friend whom I will dearly miss when I return to the United States. We have had many hilarious nights when Gary has slept over at our apartment, or when we were hanging out in the city. One time he was giving directions to some tourists; he was directing them to the beach but was afraid of mispronouncing “beach” as “bitch”. So, instead he said “be-och”, not knowing that it happened to be the “hip” pronunciation of “bitch”. Gary was embarrassed, but us and the tourists had a good laugh. :)
Another joy has been our numerous friends from Cambodia, Kenya, Thailand, the Philippines, and of course Korea. Though the depth of the relationships hasn’t been great, I have learned so much from them about the world and the beautiful variety of cultures and people. Their joy and laughter will remain in my heart and memory for many years.
I also have loved the food in Korea! It’s so good! From rotten cabbage mixed with rice, to dog soup, to seaweed wrapped rice! OK, I know that doesn’t sound good, but it is!!
Traveling has been another huge plus. On top of Korea, seeing Japan, Cambodia, Thailand, and the Philippines was incredible. It was so eye-opening to see the variety of ways of life, so challenging to encounter different life philosophies and cultural differences, so heart-breaking to see the poverty in many of the places, and so incredibly moving to see the beauty of God’s world and the greater beauty of the people he has placed in it. Though from hundreds of countries with thousands of different cultures and subcultures, we are all human and all God’s image bearers. It’s beautiful to see and experience in so many places.
Yeah, this year has been an amazing experience full of both sorrows and joys; and that is what I feel as the end nears: sorrow and joy.
Sunday, August 10
Laziness
Hey all! So, I went to the Philippines, but don't really feel like blogging about it. This is pretty obvious since I've been back for 10 days and haven't yet. It's not that it wasn't a good trip, because it was, I'm just lazy. :) So, to hear all about it and see some pics please go to Justin's blog at justinvanzee.blogspot.com or click his name on the right under chingus. Thanks Justin! :)
Friday, July 18
Mud Festival and Kid's Class
We got a little dirty! (Left to right: Me, Justin, Amy, Beyonce)
Actually, everything got really dirty!
Beyonce! (Mi Ji)
Judy and Phyllis must've skipped the lessons on hygiene.
The crew!
The Boys!
I had a few clingers!
Yeah, they are cute. :)
Saturday, July 5
Summer!
Summer vacation has finally come for me! The other professors at Kosin have been done for 3 weeks, but I ended my time as an English Professor with a 3 week summer course. It was a great way to finish my experience as a professor in Korea; I had some really fun students and the class was a joy to teach. I'm really gonna miss teaching in the classroom next year.
The last 2 weeks have also brought 2 interesting discussion nights. Justin and I were invited by our coworker, Jen, to go to her friends apartment to watch a video and discuss Islam. The video, What the West Needs to Know about Islam, had the stated goal of sharing the truth about Islam, but had a very blatant purpose of portraying Islam as a religion of war and domination. While it may have stated some or many truths, it didn't seem to at all represent the majority of Muslims that are non-violent and do not want to destroy those around them. Anyway, the video led to some interesting discussion.
The next week we watched an interview with Chuck Colson, Greg Boyd, and Shane Claiborne about the role of Christians in politics. (Here's the link to the video: http://speakingoffaith.publicradio.org/programs/evangelical_politics/.) The discussion afterward went a lot of directions, but one big issue was the connection of voting and abortion. The seven of us there were all against abortions with the main idea being the sanctity of life and humans being created in the image of God. But from there I followed the suggestion of Shane Claiborne in the video that perhaps we should also think about what being prolife means for all people, not simply unborn children. That definitely brought up a lot of different perspectives, and as I figured, I was in the definite minority of those who had a leaning towards pacifism and non-violent resistance. I wasn't too bothered by this, I know there are millions of Christians who believe in just war and the like. What concerned me that night, and what concerns me more often, is the number of people who will argue very well for the sanctity of life and humans being created in the image of God when the lives of unborn children are at stake, but the ideas don't even cross their minds when they talk of going to war with other nations to defend our freedom. Yes, I love the freedoms in the United States, but it bothers me when we seem to worship freedom and fail to even give a first thought, let alone a second thought, to the cost of that freedom...not for our citizens, but for the world. Don't get me wrong, I love America, I just want people to think about the sanctity of life seriously and beyond the scope of unborn children.
On another note, I read this article (http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2001/julyweb-only/7-2-24.0.html) in Christianity Today and was wondering what some other people think about it.
Anyway, happy 4th of July. I hope you enjoyed some awesome grilled food, a good beer, and watched some fireworks with the fam.
This is what I really wanted on the 4th and miss dearly from the USA!
The last 2 weeks have also brought 2 interesting discussion nights. Justin and I were invited by our coworker, Jen, to go to her friends apartment to watch a video and discuss Islam. The video, What the West Needs to Know about Islam, had the stated goal of sharing the truth about Islam, but had a very blatant purpose of portraying Islam as a religion of war and domination. While it may have stated some or many truths, it didn't seem to at all represent the majority of Muslims that are non-violent and do not want to destroy those around them. Anyway, the video led to some interesting discussion.
The next week we watched an interview with Chuck Colson, Greg Boyd, and Shane Claiborne about the role of Christians in politics. (Here's the link to the video: http://speakingoffaith.publicradio.org/programs/evangelical_politics/.) The discussion afterward went a lot of directions, but one big issue was the connection of voting and abortion. The seven of us there were all against abortions with the main idea being the sanctity of life and humans being created in the image of God. But from there I followed the suggestion of Shane Claiborne in the video that perhaps we should also think about what being prolife means for all people, not simply unborn children. That definitely brought up a lot of different perspectives, and as I figured, I was in the definite minority of those who had a leaning towards pacifism and non-violent resistance. I wasn't too bothered by this, I know there are millions of Christians who believe in just war and the like. What concerned me that night, and what concerns me more often, is the number of people who will argue very well for the sanctity of life and humans being created in the image of God when the lives of unborn children are at stake, but the ideas don't even cross their minds when they talk of going to war with other nations to defend our freedom. Yes, I love the freedoms in the United States, but it bothers me when we seem to worship freedom and fail to even give a first thought, let alone a second thought, to the cost of that freedom...not for our citizens, but for the world. Don't get me wrong, I love America, I just want people to think about the sanctity of life seriously and beyond the scope of unborn children.
On another note, I read this article (http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2001/julyweb-only/7-2-24.0.html) in Christianity Today and was wondering what some other people think about it.
Anyway, happy 4th of July. I hope you enjoyed some awesome grilled food, a good beer, and watched some fireworks with the fam.
This is what I really wanted on the 4th and miss dearly from the USA!
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