busan sand festival and the army ball

happy father's day!

to go along with my earlier post, i have been wanting to make a point of thanking my parents for all they have done for us kids. they have overcome many difficult obstacles and have sacrificed a great deal for my siblings and me.

when i hear the national anthem of Korea or the U.S. I think a lot of my parents. as i listen to the melodies and words, i reflect on what it means to love a country or to feel patriotic.

my dad, is one of the most patriotic people i know. he still affectionately refers to korea as "my country" when he references it. he loves the land; he loves the people. i know he must miss his home country terribly. i can only imagine how difficult it must have been for my parents to leave all of their family and friends behind to move to the u.s. having moved to a "foreign" country, i can finally empathize with him. i understand the frustration he must have felt with the language barrier, the cultural differences and misunderstandings, missing what he could have "back home" or giving up a comfortable life so he could provide a better life for his family.

my dad is the hardest worker i know. he worked so hard to be sure all of us could have a beautiful home, an excellent education and the opportunity to go to college. we've all gone to college and even graduate school. we are all healthy and have never been in need. I owe both my dad and my mom a lot of gratitude for those gifts.

dad, happy father's day! you came to the u.s. as a 20-something newly wed, probably not sure what you were getting yourself into and you've been so bountifully blessed by God. thank you for being so brave and all you have sacrificed. you are a great example of the american dream.

tearing up at the movies

have you ever gone to a movie on a military base? well, if you have you know that they play the national anthem before any movie they show. the lights dim a little and a loud crackling recording booms through the speaker system and immediately everyone in the theater jumps up and stands at attention. i learned this this the hard way...i was already in my movie lounging position when the lights dimmed and i saw people standing and i scrambled to stand up from my folding seat without spilling popcorn all over my lap. i wasn't sure what was happening and my date didn't offer any explanation. afterward peter looked over at me and said, "sorry...i forgot to tell you they do that here." well, what i once thought was a strange formality has become something i really enjoy and even look forward to.

since we are in korea our movie theater plays the korean national anthem first then the u.s. anthem. the theater plays an old video featuring different landscapes of korea with an old recording of a large korean choir singing and orchestra playing this beautiful song. every time i hear the korean anthem i tear up. the melody is so rich and lovely. the anthem moves me. i think of the tragedy this nation has experienced, how families were broken apart, so many lives lost from war and how, even still, this nation remains in a state of division.

if you want to hear the anthem, here's a video.

and these are the lyrics in english:

Until the East Sea's waves are dry, (and) Mt. Baekdusan worn away, God watch o'er our land forever! Our country forever!

Rose of Sharon, thousand miles of range and river land! Guarded by her people, ever may Korea stand!

Like that Mt. Namsan armored pine, standing on duty still, wind or frost, unchanging ever, be our resolute will.

In autumn's, arching evening sky,crystal, and cloudless blue, Be the radiant moon our spirit, steadfast, single, and true.

With such a will, (and) such a spirit, loyalty, heart and hand, Let us love, come grief, come gladness, this, our beloved land!

things you see in korea (some of my fav!)

gardens and farmland are all throughout this beautiful country...whether it's in a big open field or in the nooks and crannies of the city, koreans know how to maximize their space.
mountains, mountains, mountains everywhere. this photo is from the winter, but now the mountains are bright green and smile at me every day on my way to work.
this is "chungdo" a city that is considered much more rural. people who live in the country are very hospitable. they are known to invite strangers in their home to allow them to stay with them or feed them meals even though they live quite humbly themselves. while we were there a few elderly people were giving us presents of free peaches and plums. the people are so very kind and the land is very beautiful.

kids run around the streets freely. they have no fear of strangers or crime because korea is so safe. i even see 7 and 8 year olds ride the bus or subway alone. these kiddos ran past peter and i on a walk and yelled out their english they've been learning at their hagwons: hello! how are you! thank you! (this happens all the time and pete loves it!)

we have an amazing market that comes right outside our apartment door selling all kinds of goodies from freshly made donuts to fish. i usually stop here to buy fruit, veggies and eggs. they even sell kitchenware, books, freshly made korean popcorn style snacks. it's rockin' good. nothing beats stepping outside your apartment door to be greeted by an amazing farmer's market!
here's a view of a seat on the KTX train--korea's speed train. i'm sitting in first class because a lady wanted to sit in my coach seat. pretty sweet. they have a rule that you can't talk in first class which makes it an excellent napping opportunity.

nope. it's not the lighting. that car is pink. pepto pink.
my favorite car in korea. i just want to scoop down and pick it up and put it in my pocket. a little grandma walked in front of it and practically blocked the entire view of the car. seriously, it's tiny.
the rose bushes in korea are amazing! either the koreans really know how to prune these bushes to get the most buds for their branches or they are just amazing roses because every bush i see is just bursting with these brilliant beauties.

election day

korea is having a rather large government election this coming wednesday. posters are plastered everywhere with headshots of all of the candidates. the hype of the election is extremely entertaining to me. campaigners line the roads with cards, pamphlets and posters indicating their candidate of choice. the candidates themselves wear sashes (think male beauty pageant) and stand on busy street corners and humbly bow to the lanes of cars hoping to score some votes from the drivers whizzing by.

printing in korea is rather cheap so there are dozens of HUGE color banners hanging from tall buildings advertising the promises of each of the candidates. i must admit i am completely ignorant about this election. i am trying to learn a little, but as of now i'm merely judging the candidates on "how good of a smiler" they are.

my favorite part of this election are the party trucks that buzz by with a bunch of people standing in the back waving to the fast-beat of a Korean tune. They all wear white gloves have permanent smiles and they sway back in forth of a bongo truck saying things like "vote for soandso!" the trucks zoom around on these big and small side streets parading the flag of each candidate. all the candidates have their "truck". I've seen at least 20 of them driving around and they all have their party team in the back waving or rather swaying with jazz fingers spread and big smiles. i'm not sure how a crowded truck with people jammed in the back giving me jazz fingers with white gloves on makes me want to vote for someone, but i guess the koreans dig it or i wouldn't see 20 trucks whiz by.

here are some pics of the festivities. i wanted to take a pic of one of the party trucks, but they were too fast for me!

goodness! a month gone by!

Hello all.

wow. how time goes so quickly, eh? well, we have some more changes in the air. peter has moved to busan to start his new job and i am staying in daegu to finish mine. after looong conversations peter and i have decided that i should keep my job for the next school year and we're praying and hoping that he will be restationed here in daegu this coming winter. the idea of living apart is quite daunting to me. it's hard to live with someone and then suddenly be alone, but i'm hoping it allows me the time to reflect more and feast on God's word. i got a brand new amazing bible (ESV study bible---i highly recommend it!) to keep me company.

i've also been to long beach and come back for my third task force meeting for work. i've made some great friends with people which has made these long trips so much more exciting. i have really enjoyed the work we've done together and I'm hoping we'll be able to offer some really helpful recommendations for the department of defense school system.

i'm missing all of you so very much. i'll post some more soon!

change is in the air

spring has finally come. it's so lovely. there's nothing like breathing in the first spring air. one of my favorite smells. it's appropriate for the weather to be changing right around now because we've been having many changes in our lives too. peter's job has changed and he will be working in busan. in fact, he's already moved into an apartment there and has officially "changed his duty station". we decided that i should remain in daegu until the end of the school year. i would love to join him, but considering i teach first grade, leaving 3/4 til the end of the year is not ideal. it's best for the kiddos if i stay, plus i get to enjoy them for another couple months and we can have the extra income for a little while longer. the school's headquarters has graciously granted me a housing allowance so i can keep our daegu apartment. so, for probably the only time in our life, peter and i will have two homes : ) i like to think of our busan apartment as my vacation or summer home. : )

so....this is the reason i've been away for so long from my blog. hopefully things will settle down a bit and i'll be blogging more regularly. here are a few more updates....(i'll just do them in bullets cause, well, i've had to make lots of lists lately with all of the craziness of our move, paperwork, etc, & my brain seems to be thinking bullet in bullet form : / )

• peter's been a rockstar lieutenant. he's doing a great job with his soldiers and work. i'm very proud. you probably already knew that though.
• i'm coming to the states for another task force meeting. our destination is long beach, california! sunny beaches, here i come! (apr 17-24)
• my spring break is next week.....hey, what's that? i think i hear the hallelujah chorus in the background...
• we miss everyone.
• please come visit us in busan!
• i realize these are no longer updates but i'm still writing in bullet form.
• : /
• spring break, please come soon!
• we loooove you!