Anyong-haseyo from Korea! The past few weeks have been very busy and intense as I’ve transitioned into my new life in Korea, but I would like to update you all on what’s been happening in my life over the past month.
I was very thankful to spend a few days in Japan with my family prior to moving to Korea. After being away from my family for 6 months, any number of days with them is a blessing. The trip was unexpected because I was initially supposed to go directly to Korea. But the Lord provided the opportunity for me to go and for that I am truly thankful.
I flew into Incheon, Seoul airport on July 23rd, the trip from Nagoya being much shorter than the one from Philadelphia. I am currently living about 30 minutes outside of Seoul in a town called Hwajeong. The experience transitioning into a new culture has been an interesting one. I’ve found that the Korean culture is one entirely unique unto itself, and while it has similarities to both America and Japan, it is vastly different in so many ways.
The first day I was able to meet my co-teacher who helped me navigate the bus system which takes me to the school about 30 minutes away from my apartment. The elementary school, though smaller than most other schools, has about 500 students. And as I found out that day, I will be teaching about 300 of them. The children were all very excited to have a new English teacher, I spent the entire day responding to children as they yelled, “Hello, how are you?” into my class room as they walked by. Their English is limited, but they are very eager to learn, and my co-teacher has been more than helpful in introducing me to them. The next day I was successful in making my way to school and spent another day being introduced to many more of my students. Many Koreans adopt foreign names in addition to their own, particularly in a school setting. While some of my students had names such as John, Samuel and Katie, I came in contact with some interesting names that the children had picked out themselves such as Strawberry, Fire Tornado, Obama and Mr. Bong. They seemed just as amused about the names as I was, I really enjoyed my first few days of getting to know them.
A very kind teacher at my school invited me to come to church with her the second week I was in Korea. A large church of about 2,000 members which is located in Ilsan, about 15 minutes away from Hwajeong. The teacher who brought me with her is involved in both the Korean and English services that they hold every Sunday. The English service they have in the afternoon is on the smaller size, ranging from 15 to 30 people while the Korean services have anywhere from 400 to 600 people at a time. I’ve had the opportunity to attend both, and have been able to meet many kind people who have made me feel most welcome. Many people involved in the English service are Koreans who want to work on their English, and are always looking for foreigners to get involved in their service. In the past few weeks they’ve asked me to help teach Sunday School for children in English, help lead the Fellowship group after each service for adults and help lead music and singing during the service. They have been really great in helping me adjust to life in Korea, willing to answer any questions I might have and show me around the area.
Summer vacation has begun for the students, which means that I will be leading a summer camp for the next three weeks. It is very common in Korea for students to go to English camps during their school vacations, parents want them to have as much exposure as possible to the language. The past few weeks have been very hectic, as I’ve had to put together an entire camp with only three weeks to plan. Although I’ve finished the overall camp curriculum itself, I still have much additional planning to do which will have to take place after camp is finished each day. I will have a total of 30 students everyday and will be teaching them about American culture.
The Lord has been teaching me many things as I’ve transitioned into my new life in Hwajeong. Although it has been difficult at times, being in a completely foreign culture, not knowing anyone and not speaking the language, I’ve been amazed at how faithful God has been during this time. I’ve had the opportunity to meet so many kind and helpful people, who have really reached out to me and found ways to make me feel at home.
Praises:
- A smooth adjustment into my new job. I have found that my co-teacher and I work really well together and she has been such a blessing as I’ve transitioned into my life here. My co-teacher, Moon, has helped me with every detail of my life from buying a bus card to grocery shopping and getting Internet set up at my apartment. I am very thankful for her.
- Church: I’ve been blessed with a nice group of people at the church I started attending. I’m so thankful for my teacher friend who is willing to bring me with her each Sunday. Finding a church can be very difficult, but the Lord provided me with one the second week I was here and it looks as though I will be staying with them for the year.
- The opportunity to return home to Japan in August after my summer camp, for vacation prior to school starting up again at the end of August
Prayer Requests
- That I will get to know my fellow teachers better in the coming months. Many of them don’t speak a lot of English so it is difficult to communicate with them
- That I will be diligent in learning the language, knowing the most basic conversation will be extremely helpful in talking to people both at school and just being out socially at stores and restaurants. The Korean language has a few minor similarities to Japanese, thankfully the grammar is structured the same, but I am still really starting at the beginning in terms of learning a brand new language
- That I will find the best way to serve at my new church and not over commit myself this early on.
- My summer camp: the English of the students is very limited and many of them do not want to be at school during the summer. On the other hand, the parents who send their children to summer camp have high expectations for their English language development over the course of the camp. It is a difficult balance to find, to both educate the kids but also make sure that they have fun in the process. Please pray for wisdom in planning the camp and that I will have patience with the children during the course of the three weeks.
I thank you all for your prayers and support.
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