Winter Open House

Today is the culmination of 3 months of practice, tears, yelling, bribes and frustration.  Today my Kindergarten students will perform their Winter Open House.  I'm always amazed when I step back and actually look at what all my students know.  Our Open House consists of minute-long self introductions by my students, example of class time work led by the students, a Phonics section, a Science lesson, a story with comprehension questions, a 10 minute play and 2 songs.  The entire production is about 45 minutes long.  My students are so smart, and I think we're as ready as we'll ever be.  My biggest worry is actually that I'm gonna trip on my heels and fall off the stage on my face (this wasn't a concern to me until I dreamt of such a tragedy last night).  This is my last big thing at work before I leave, which is really strange to think about.  It's hard to believe I'll be home in 3 and a half weeks...wow!!!

I hope you all are enjoying the holiday season.  Don't let the stress mask the reason for this incredible season!

It's ALL About Him,

KendallCooke

Korea's Idea of American Thanksgiving

We had an International Food Festival today at school, and I ate entirely too much food.  I don't even wanna imagine the number of calories I consumed.  Let me back up and explain exactly what our 'International Food Festival' was.

So Koreans pretty much think that American Thanksgiving is a day when Americans get together and indulge in gluttony.  I guess they aren't that far off.  So to celebrate Thanksgiving, or rather to celebrate the fact that Americans eat a ton of food on Thanksgiving, we had a little party today.  Each classroom was assigned one country from around the world.  There was Korea, Japan, China, America, Italy, Mexico, and India.  My classroom was assigned China.  So each student from my class brought in Chinese food.  When I say they brought Chinese food, I don't mean a plate of egg rolls and sweet and sour chicken.  I mean each student brought in an entire meal of Chinese food.  And each student from all the other classes brought in an entire meal of their country's food.  So during lunch today we had 6 fold out tables covered without any space with food from all these countries.  It was delicious!  I wish my stomach was bigger so that I could have eaten more.  On top of the delicious food, I got to eat in my classroom with my students, which was really fun.  I almost never eat with them, and we don't get a whole lot of non-teaching time to hangout, so it was nice to just relax and joke with them for a bit.  It was a pretty good day in Korea!

I'm getting ready to head to bed and when I wake up it will be Thanksgiving.  Only it won't REALLY be Thanksgiving.  Because instead of wrestling with my siblings for the remote control and listening to Mother Hen Kash yell at all of us to get in the kitchen and help her, I will be going to work and teaching English for 7 hours.  And instead of turkey, mashed potatoes, rolls, pie, etc., I'll probably be eating kimchi and rice.  Ahhh....such is life!

I hope you all enjoy the holiday immensely and are super thankful for all the blessings that God has given us!

It's ALL About Him,

KendallCooke

Rich's Bakery!!!!

I walk by this little bakery everyday on my way to and from the gym.  And as can imagined, it always reminds me of my father, as his name is Rich.

Can't wait to get home and hang out with that man, complaining about Illini sports, eating spoonfuls of corn syrup and talking about soccer.  (And mom, don't take this as a slight because there's no "Mary's" on my way to the gym.  I'm counting down the days until I get to do fun stuff like shopping, gossiping, and watching movies with you too.)

I hope you all have an amazing Thanksgiving week!!!  Eat lots of turkey, potatoes, rolls, pie and all those other goodies for me!  Love you all!


It's ALL About Him,

KendallCooke

Pepero!!!

Here's that Pepero picture I promised.  I've eaten all the chocolate covered Pepero that I received so I had to snap a picture of the strawberry dipped Pepero instead.  You still get the idea.

Well it's been forever..

It's been a busy, tough, frustrating. long last 2 months.  So I'm moving on from there.

As you all already know, yesterday was 11/11/11.  In Korea every year on 11/11, they celebrate 'Pepero Day.'  On 'Pepero Day', Koreans give pepero to all their loved ones, including family, friends, teachers, etc.  Pepero are skinny breadstick/cookie things that have one end dipped in chocolate (I'll have to post a picture on here when I find my camera).  They actually are quite good.  It was a fun day at school.  I got a bunch of pepero from my students, and then we ate A TON in class.  All my students were bouncing off the walls.  It was a good and fun day!!!

I'll be home in 6 weeks, and I can't believe it.  I hope all is going well for you back home in the States.

It's ALL About Him,

KendallCooke

Frantic.

I am currently sitting at Starbucks frantically flipping through pages and pages of law school information and frantically clicking through the 12 tabs I have on my browser trying to make some decision about where to apply to law school.  And I realize that I am just that...frantic.  Let me place you in my shoes just for a minute.

Close your eyes and imagine that you are currently living about 6,000 miles from home.  While you are there, someone tells you that you need to try to decide where exactly you are going to live for at least the next 3-4 years if not the next 5-10 years when you return home.  Then they tell you that you can only choose 10-12 cities in the entire United States...and one of those cities is where you must spend the next couple years of your life.  Do you feel the panic begin to set in?  Increased heart rate...shortened breath...sweaty palms.  This is where I find myself.

As thrilling and exciting as applying to law school and picturing my future can be at times, it is equally nerve racking and stressful.  I've been pouring over the top 100 law schools for at least 6 weeks...comparing strength of programs and national mobility and tuition and median scholarship grants and cities and teacher:student ratio and application fees and first time bar passage percentages and 9 month after graduation employment rates and likelihood of acceptance.  And I still sit here with a list of 50+ schools...which is unfortunate since I don't have $4000 just lying around to put towards application fees for all of these schools.  While schools have officially started accepting applications, I don't even have a final list of schools that I'm going to apply to.  So yeah...that's where I'm at right now.

I hope you all enjoyed the Fall Festival and the parade.  Wish I could have been there this weekend for that.  I pray that this Sunday finds you well.

It's ALL About Him,

KendallCooke

Seoul Forest...yeah right

Since coming back from Cambodia 2 weeks ago, I wasn't allowing myself to post any new blogs because I kept intending to write about all I did and saw in Cambodia.  But after just jotting a rough outline of all we did and saw, I've decided it would be entirely too long and nearly impossible to write about.  I'll have to tell you all in person when I get back to the States and then you can actually see the pictures of the places that I'm talking about.  So I'm just gonna pick up from today. 

Today, August 15th, was Korea's Independence Day so that meant no work...HOORAY!!!  I, along with a couple friends, decided we should do something outside if the weather was 'nice' (by nice we really meant not raining).  So today we all got up bright and early to head over to Seoul Forest for a couple hours.  We rarely ever see nature in the part of the city that we live in so we were excited to spend some time in a forest, which is also said to be Seoul's biggest national park.  But when we got there it was totally depressing.  It wasn't anything like a forest.  Enormous disappointment!  And no matter where you walked around in the premises, you could see skyscrapers and freeways.  We did, however, have a little fun while there.  We decided to rent bicycles, and Nate and I cruised around on a pink tandem bike for the better part of an hour. 

After that, we went to lunch in Itaewon (the foreigner's district) at this delicious authentic Italian restaurant.  I ate lasagna with handmade noodles, and it was so delicious.  One of the best things I have eaten since I've come to Seoul.  Then Monica and Nate got the most incredible deserts. (Let me qualify this statement.  Koreans don't cook with real butter or sugar or other basic baking necessities, so the majority of the baked goods here are terrible.  We haven't had a real piece of cake in months and months.) 

All in all, it turned out to be a pretty good day.  And now I'm gonna finish this day and get to bed.  As of late, I haven't been able to sleep more than 3 or 4 hours a night so I'm exhausted right now. 

Love you all and miss you much!  18 weeks until I will be home for Christmas.

It's ALL About Him, 

KendallCooke

Forecast: Rain, Rain, and some more Rain

It is monsoon season in Seoul, which means 1 thing.  Rain...lots and lots and lots of rain.  For all of my life, my least favorite season has been winter.  I hate the cold and having to bundle up and unbundle every time you leave or enter a place and not being able to play outside for more than a few minutes and scraping ice off of your windshield.  I especially disliked winter in Korea with people using their umbrellas while it snowed and unplowed/unshoveled sidewalks and roads and a general lack of holiday cheer.  But I've decided that my new least favorite season is summer in Korea.  Because summer in Korea means monsoon season.  And monsoon season, as I stated previously, means rain and rain and rain.  Of the last 30 days, it has rained in Seoul 27 days.  Everyday when I have woken up to try to get a run in for the last month, it has been raining.  Most days when I go to lunch, it is raining.  And usually when I leave work at night and walk home, it is raining.  As I sit in my apartment typing this, it is raining.  And when it rains here, it isn't just a light drizzle or a short burst of rain and then clear skies.  It is torrential downpour for hours upon hours.  I'm not sure how the entire city hasn't flooded.  I feel like I live in a rain forest or that I should be boarding an ark full of animals soon.  I didn't have any idea that it could rain this much in one place.

Luckily, tonight at a staff dinner, my boss said monsoon season ends on Saturday.  And then there is a possibility that we might have a typhoon, which would mean rain for a bit longer.  But fingers crossed that the typhoon veers towards Japan and leaves Korea alone.  Because if so, my boss said that starting next Tuesday we will have some traditional Midwest summer weather...hot, sunny and humid.  I couldn't be more excited!

Here's to struggling through a couple more of these depressing, dark, gloomy, rainy days and getting to the sunshine on the other side.  I hope the weather back home is being more amicable than the weather here is.

Love you and miss you all!!!

It's ALL About Him,

KendallCooke

Another day in Seoul

I'm not sure what I feel today.  Another good friend/co-worker left last Thursday to return to the States, and I think I've been in some sort of funk since.  It is really hard to get used to the constant stream of people coming in and out of your life here.  Everyone here starts their teaching contract at a different time of the year, so it seems like people are almost constantly leaving and new people are arriving all the time.  It's a difficult transition from life back home where you may make some new friends and have a couple friends move away over the years, but for the most part, you are surrounded by your same network of people, the same friends and family.  Luckily, I've never had much trouble making new friends or getting to know people.  But continuously meeting new people and attempting to form some sort of lasting bond/friendship is utterly exhausting.  It feels like just as I start getting comfortable with a person and he/she with me, that person leaves the country.  And then we're back to square one getting to know another person.  And since I now find myself on the downward slope with less than half of my contract left, some days it almost feels pointless putting out all the effort for a friendship that would last at most only 5 and a half more months.  It's just weird. I can't even explain all the different emotions, except to say I'm not sure how I feel.  I do know that I'm fortunate to have one friend in my office who came only about 6 weeks before me and with whom I have become quite good friends.  I would probably lose it if he were leaving soon.

I miss you, all my friends and family back in the States.  I think about you daily and am quietly wishing for winter to return (even though I do so desperately hate the cold) so that I can come home and spend the winter holidays with you.  I hope you had a fabulous 4th of July and that your summer has been and will continue to be splendid.  Well, I have an apple pie in the oven that I believe needs to come out.

It's ALL About Him,

KendallCooke

LSAT Frustrations

Well today was the day.  After months of LSAT prep (I can't believe it's actually over), test day had finally arrived.  I woke up this morning more than just a little bit anxious.  Not only was I worried about taking the actual test, but I was quite concerned with what the testing environment would be like here in Korea.  But then I thought to myself, this is a country of test takers.  Koreans grow up taking "big" and "important" exams all the time.  I told myself that surely this society, which relies so heavily on testing, had worked out all the kinks of giving an enormous, important test.  After a couple cups of coffee, a hearty breakfast and approximately an hour of audibly reminding myself that life would continue even if I didn't do well on the LSAT, I grabbed my umbrella and headed out the door into the rain.  I was pretty lucky in that the LSAT was being given at Yonsei University, which is about a 5-7 minute walk from my apartment.  I trekked up the hill to Yonsei, tracked down the School of Law and ducked inside. 

From the minute I stepped inside that building, I realized that my concerns with the testing facility/environment were not in vain.  From the minute my foot hit the tile of the building floor, I saw chaos occurring all around me.  After asking more than a handful of people, I finally found my way to the testing room and took my spot in a line of 10 other test takers waiting to be checked in.  After 20-25 minutes in line, I began to get impatient.  I couldn't understand what was wrong; all they had to do was check ID and look in a plastic baggie.  But as I got closer to the front, I saw the issue.  Recently, LSAC (the Law School Admission Council) has starting requiring a passport style/size photo on LSAT admission tickets.  Two of the girls in my line had failed to get these pictures and were now standing in line trying to persuade the proctor to let them in.  I took a deep breath and walked inside the classroom, trying desperately not to get upset at other people's stupid mistakes.  But stupid mistakes couldn't stop there...oh on.

The test began, and it wasn't long before I found myself desperately trying to push past more annoyances.  The LSAT is an American test taken to get into American law schools where an American, all English curriculum will be taught.  Thus, I could NOT understand why the proctor spoke ONLY in Korean.  It logically does not follow.  Even now I find myself getting annoyed at recalling the event.  So yeah, apart from when reading the actual LSAT Proctor Rules, she spoke entirely in Korean.  I understand that most of the people there were Korean, but I can't understand why the proctor thought speaking in Korean would be not only acceptable but sufficient.  Luckily, I had read the LSAT booklet numerous times and could probably recite most of the LSAT regulations and rules (I am aware that this makes me ridiculously nerdy, but I like to know the code that I am expected to conduct myself by.).  But there were a handful of other American, non-Korean test takers who may not have been so familiar with LSAT rules and the way it is run.  They had no way to know what was going on or expected of them, because only Korean was being spoken at us.

I took another deep breath and moved on with the test, refusing to let these things annoy me.  Try as I might, it wasn't long before something else made me so upset that I almost said something to the proctor and am still considering writing a note to the LSAC.  As of the June 2011 LSAT, which was today's LSAT for those of you who might be confused, the LSAC instituted a zero tolerance policy in regards to breaking LSAT regulations.  Previously, if a test taker was found breaking a regulation, he or she received one warning and upon a second infraction was dismissed from the test center.  The new policy stated that upon the first time that a test taker is found breaking a regulation, he or she must be dismissed from the testing facility.  I really like this change in policies.  I believe the LSAT is something that should be taken seriously.  While the proctor explained this to everyone in Korean (I only know because some of the words she used in the midst of her Korean were actually English words, like regulations and dismissed), test takers still couldn't get it together.  I had a guy next to me who brought in a digital watch (against regulation) but was only required to take it off halfway into the test when the proctor finally recognized it.  I had a girl next to me crack open a Coke in the middle of the 2bd section, which as you can probably guess is against regulation.  The proctor said nothing to this girl as she chugged her Coke.  There was, also, a girl next to me who wouldn't put down her pencil at the end of section after the proctor called time.  The proctor warned her several times and then had to physically pull the answer sheet out of the girl's hands as she continued filling in circles.  That girl was allowed to stay until the end of the test.  And then another girl fought in audible voices with the proctor for probably 6 or 7 of the 35 minutes that we were allowed on the 5th section.  So yeah...from the minute I stepped in until the minute I walked out it was crazy, chaotic, frustrating, annoying and not run professionally or properly.

I couldn't tell if I was more relieved to be finished with the actual LSAT or to just get out of that RIDICULOUS testing environment.  One way or another, there was a waive of relief that washed over me as I walked back to my apartment.  I have no idea how I did on the test.  I would be really, really surprised if I bombed it, because a lot of the material was easy.  But I don't imagine I did super, as all the distractions around me definitely "distracted" me.  I'd guess it was probably about the same as I did last time.  I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

As I wait, I am praying earnestly that God will direct me and show me where He would have me be.  I pray that I am able to see the truthfulness of God's promises and understand that no matter how the test went, God has something in store for me that is greater than anything I could ever ask or imagine.  Some days I fall to my knees when reminded of the greatness of our God and then other days I proceed without barely giving it thought.  May He be the center of our every thought and action; for He is a good, good God that we serve.

It's ALL About Him,

KendallCooke 

Children Geniuses

As I sat at my desk tonight working on lesson plans for next week and getting more and more frustrated at the mere idea of teaching more blended sounds to my K students (we simply cannot get these down), it suddenly dawned on me how incredibly smart my K students are.  My Kindergarten students, who are 4 or 5 years-old in the States, know how to identify and define nouns, verbs, and adjectives.  They can read at a 1st or 2nd grade level.  They know how to write sentences describing plot, setting, and characters, as well as sentences about animals, foods, family, favorite things, etc.  My K students can add single- and double-digits, subtract single-digit numbers and count by 2s, 5s, and 10s.  And all this they can do in another language.  I feel so lucky to have the opportunity to work with these bright, fun, adorable children.


Monday marked my 6 month anniversary in Korea.  I can't believe that my time here is halfway done.  Though I certainly miss things from home (family, friends, driving, cottage cheese, real cake, running on the road), I can't help but be a little bit sad that my time here is ticking away this quickly.  I take the LSAT on Sunday, have 3 weeks of work after that, am taking a 7-day vacation to Cambodia with a friend, and then will only have 4 short months left here.  It's crazy!!!

I hope all things are well at home.  I miss you and love you all!

It's ALL About Him,

KendallCooke

P.S.-I had every intention of posting several pictures of my adorable students but I can't get this dang site to work for the life of me.  So I guess I'll have to post them at a later date.

Open House...Grrrrr..

After teaching and working for almost 6 months, I finally decided to take a personal day and give myself the opportunity to just relax on a day that I "should" be teaching.  I slept in until 7, got up and got a run in.  Then I bummed around and watched some American television on my computer and finally made my way to Myeong-dong.  Myeong-dong is the main shopping district in Seoul.  It has a bunch of international clothing stores and shoe stores and make-up stores, etc.  I read that on an average day more than 2 million people visit Myeong-dong.  As I have been working for months and saving most of what I make and counting every penny I spend, I decided that I'd pamper myself a bit on my day off.  I went and got a pedicure and then hit the shops in Myeong-dong.  I found some cute dresses and shirts.  Overall, it was a successful day.  But I would be lying if I said that I'm feeling relaxed and cool, calm and collected after my day off.  Honestly, I am stressed to the MAX!

Twice a year, my school hosts an Open House for each class.  Open House is an opportunity for the parents to come and see what their students have been learning at our school.  In theory, it seems like a great idea.  I love the idea of parents coming into my classroom and seeing what my students have been learning and how far they've come in the last couple months.  However, in practice, Open House is terrible!  Instead of running a normal, everyday class, we perform a scripted class.  For the past 2 months, my students have been working on perfecting this scripted class.  They are expected to speak perfectly when their parents come so their parents will see how much they've learned, even though half the time my students don't understand what they're saying.  They've just memorized their lines.  If Open House doesn't go well, parents pull their students and put them in other schools.  So obviously us teachers have a ridiculous amount of pressure to perform perfectly.  My Open House is on Friday.  And just thinking about it and writing about it right now has caused 3 new stress canker sores to pop up in my mouth.  My students are so unpredictable.  I've bribed them with everything I can think of to make sure they perform to the best of their abilities.  (I know...I'm a good teacher...right?)

Additionally, I am taking the LSAT in 10 days.  I only have 10 days of studying left...AHHHHHH!!!!  I've already taken this stupid test once.  Still I cannot help but feel that my entire future is riding on my performance on this test.  I tell myself hourly, at least, that God has a plan for me, a plan to prosper me and not to harm me, to give me hope and a future (Jeremiah 29:11).  Yet they feel simply like words that leave my mouth and then fall to the ground and shatter.  My deepest prayer is that sometime soon, preferably in the next week and a half, these words that I continue to recite will settle in my heart.  How much easier it is to say something rather than actually believe it.

I guess what I'm trying to say is life is good, but right now life is also very stressful, difficult and confusing.  I would greatly appreciate your prayers as I work through Open House in the next couple days, take the LSAT on the 26th and ultimately work on believing God's promises for my life.

It's ALL About Him,

KendallCooke

Lame.

I feel so domesticated.  And so old.  And so LAME!!!  The highlight of my day was going to the grand reopening of the grocery store in my neighborhood after work.  Yes, you heard me right...the highlight of my day.  I'm not exactly sure when I turned into the person who counts down the weeks and days until the nearest grocery opens or who is brought to tears by classical music or who dresses for comfort above all things or who records every single cheon won (10 cents) that is spent, but I have an inkling that it happened here in Korea while I wasn't looking.    It's odd to think how much my life has changed in such a short amount of time.  Sometimes I see myself changing ever so slowly as it happens.  And then other times, like today, it hits me like a sudden flash.  I do something which seems to myself so out of character and am reminded that time marches on as much as I may try to force it to stop.  As I come to grips with the fact that time will not stop and therefore that I will continue to change as time runs its course, my only prayer is that I change for the better; that I become more loving, more patient, more kind, more compassionate and more Christlike.  Just a simple thought from a simple and more usually than not confused young woman.

News on the street is that Kristy is finally going to have her baby.  I can't wait to see pictures of my new little niece, Amelia!  Keep Kristy, Rudy, Amelia, Noah and the entire Kash family in your prayers.

I love you all and miss you more with each day that passes.

It's ALL About Him,

KendallCooke

"Ointment for the Oral Cavity Disease"

I think I'm quite lucky to have a pharmacist that speaks English at a pharmacy near my school.  I can't even begin to imagine trying to act out or gesture medical symptoms to someone who speaks no English in hopes that they will be able to decipher my motions correctly and give me medicine that will actually help my ailment.  Nevertheless, I'm always pretty apprehensive to take Korean medicines that I've picked up at the pharmacy or gotten at a doctor's office.  More times than I can count, one of my co-workers has come back from the doctor's office with a Ziploc baggy of 40-50 unlabeled pills and instructions to take these pills together twice a day and these other 2 pills every third day or something like that.  What boggles me even more is the fact that most of my co-workers begin popping these pills without a second thought about what they might be. 

A couple of days ago, I made my way into the pharmacy.  I've had these terrible canker sores taking over my mouth for the past couple weeks, and I had reached the point where I couldn't suffer through them for one more day.  I walked in and told the pharmacist that I had 4 canker sores in my mouth that were making it really difficult to eat or talk or brush.  He nodded his head in understanding and then asked, "Pill or ointment?"  I looked at him rather puzzled.  I had it in my head that I was looking for something similar to Anbesol or Orajel; something just to soothe the pain while the canker sores healed on their own.  After all I had read pretty extensively that there isn't really any cure for canker sores.  I told him ointment.  I was, then, handed a small box with a tube of ointment in it and instructed to apply twice a day.

Now if I wasn't already skeptical about taking Korean medication, I quickly became so.  I had a real issue with squirting some unknown gel into my mouth twice a day to heal my canker sores.  I fumbled around with the box trying to see if there was any clue as to what this magic medicine was.  It was then that I ran across the description of my medicine, "Ointment for the oral cavity disease."   

I silently thought to myself, "That sounds terrible!  Oral cavity disease...surely this can't be right."  Twenty minutes later the pain in my mouth took over my skepticism and I decided to give this medicine a shot.  I applied a small bit on one of my canker sores to test it out and was more than a little surprised when the gel turned into a malleable wax that clung ever so tightly to gum.  It was not what I expected.  It was weird.  But it worked.  Here I am a couple days later, canker sore free.  I still have no idea what exactly I was applying to the inside of my mouth 2x a day, but I'm still alive.  I guess I should just trust the pharmacist when he so assuredly gives me something to take.

Well I'm off to say farewell to a teacher that is leaving tomorrow.  Enjoy your Memorial Day!!!

It's ALL About Him,

KendallCooke

Gyeongbokgung

For the most part, I consider myself quite lucky to have been blessed with the co-workers I have.  I've had the opportunity to get to know a couple of them pretty well in the last couple months, and it is really nice to work with people that I get along with, both English staff and Korean staff.  On Sunday, I spent some time with some of these co-workers.  I went to Gyeongbokgung with my friends, Nate, Maeve, Monica and Min-hee.

Gyeongbokgung is one of the royal palaces that is in Seoul.  It was the main and largest palace during the Joseon dynasty.  There are dozens of different halls, temples, and gardens.  It is beautiful!!!  We went to Gyeongbokgung in early afternoon and were able to see this ceremony that they have at the palace called the changing of the guards.  In this ceremony, they reenact what the actual changing of the guard looked like back in the day when the Joseon kings actually lived there.



  It was really interesting.  Afterwards, we spent the next couple of hours walking around the different areas of the palace, exploring the different halls, enjoying the gardens and taking pictures.  It was a very relaxing and enjoyable trip.  I love history and was so excited to see an actual historical relic of Korea.  Seoul is so modern; there are very few traditional, historical things to see in the city.  I have plans to go to a couple of the smaller palaces in the upcoming weeks, and I can't wait!


 

I hope the weather hasn't been too terrible for all of you.  Love you and miss you.
 
It's ALL About Him,

KendallCooke

Children's Day

May 5th in Korea is Children's Day.  When I first ran across this holiday on my calendar, it meant absolutely nothing to me.  "I have no children of my own...what a silly holiday," I thought.  Then I found out that Children's Day is a national holiday, so I would get a day off of work.  I instantly became fond of Children's Day.  The more I think about it, it's a pretty cool holiday.  Korea is a society of hard workers.  People work a ridiculous amount of hours, and it is just the norm.  I think there are many Korean children who see their parents infrequently.  So on Children's Day, all these parents that work so many hours the rest of the year take the day off and totally spoil their kids.  I've heard it said that it is as good as or better than Christmas to Korean kids.  Lucky little children!

I didn't get loads of candy and toys from my parents, but my Children's Day was still pretty awesome!  I went to Namsan (Mt.), a famous mountain in the center of Seoul, with my friends, Monica and Nate.  I don't get to experience much nature on a daily basis, other than my bamboo plant and a half dead tree on my walk to work.  So we wanted to go somewhere full of plants and flowers and beautiful.  Namsan was just that.  At the top of Namsan is N Seoul Tower.  N Seoul Tower has an observation deck that allows you to see a panoramic view of Seoul, and I think it's the highest point in Seoul.  So once we got to the top of Namsan, we went up in the N Seoul Tower.  It was so pretty!!!  We grabbed a cup of coffee and chatted while we looked over the city that we are all growing to love. 

I think my favorite part of our day at Namsan was the "Lovers' Locks."  On the first observation deck of N Seoul Tower, there are fences all around the outside of the deck that are covered with every conceivable color, shape and type of lock.  Years ago, two lovers brought a lock with them on their visit to N Seoul Tower.  After they had spent the day there, they locked a lock onto the fence of the observation deck with a message written on it proclaiming their undying love for one another.  After they locked the lock, they threw the key over the edge of the observation deck, never to be retrieved again.  In this act, they committed themselves to each other until their lock was unlocked and removed from the fence at N Seoul Tower.  Ever since, couples have come to N Seoul Tower with locks to put on the fence, declare their love and commit to each other for as long as their lock remains on the fence.  Personally, I think the whole thing is ridiculous and funny and corny.  But the locks are beautiful.  It's breathtaking to see tens of thousands of locks covering every fence around the entire deck.  It was an all around really fun day!

Hope things are well in the States!

It's ALL About Him,

KendallCooke

Easter Away from Home

As I prepare to close the book on my Easter Sunday, many of you are probably just now rushing around getting ready to open it.  What an awesome, beautiful, hopeful day Easter is!!!  He is risen, and we are forever changed because of it...AMEN!!!!

Though I went to church this morning and was even involved in a Reader's Theater about Easter, it just didn't quite feel like Easter.  I realized this afternoon that this was my first Easter away from home, and it just felt odd.  No screaming, yelling, and chaos this morning as I got ready for church like there normally is at the Kash household on Easter morning.  No sunrise service.  No Kash family picture that normally takes about 15 minutes and ends with at least 2 unhappy children.  No lunch with my family and grandparents.   It wasn't a bad day at all.  I got to rejoice with people that I care about.  I had the opportunity to invite some co-workers to church.  The weather was beautiful.  It just didn't quite feel like Easter.  I wasn't aware how much I relish spending this holiday with my family...probably more than any other holiday.  I had a good day, but I'll be more than ready to spend next Easter as a unit of the Kash family.

That being said, today really was pretty great!  I got to spend this morning at church, which was awesome.  And then this afternoon as I was running errands, it hit me out of nowhere that I'm really kinda falling in love with Korea.  I think it was hard for me to appreciate and enjoy Korea when I first got here and during the winter, because the winter was just miserable.  It was too cold to go out.  We only had like 8 or 9 hours of sunlight, most of which I was spending at work.  But now that the weather is nicer and I'm able to get out and I've learned how to leave work at work, I see all these little beauties around, all these small splendid surprises that Seoul has for me.  When I was out this afternoon, I thought, for the very first time, how I will probably really miss Korea when my contract is up here. 

It's so funny how God turns hearts and changes perspectives.  I've been asking God to show me how to love the people around me and enjoy and appreciate this opportunity to live and work in Korea.  For weeks, I remained restless and upset due to bad interactions with Koreans; willing to put in the time and fulfill my contract, but more ready than ever to leave and never look back.  Then today, I blinked my eyes, and when they opened again, it was as if I was seeing things for the first time.  It felt like I had instantaneously fallen in love with this country and its people and its culture and all its intricacies.  It's been a good day.  I am positive that I will find myself angry about this or that in the coming months, but my entire perspective has shifted.  And it feels so nice.

I hope you all are reminded of the love of God and the hope that we have on this holy, miraculous day.  HAPPY EASTER!!!

It's ALL About Him,

KendallCooke

Miss Kendall, What's Easter?

Today at school, we "dyed" (and by dyed I mean colored brown eggs with markers...ugh...not nearly as fun as real dying) Easter eggs as a school-wide Easter craft.  Over the past couple weeks, my school has had several Easter activities.  The first week of April, we were required to do an Easter craft (mine was an origami Easter basket).  The second week we went to the park for the annual Easter egg hunt.  Now this week we dyed Easter eggs.  In the midst of all these activities, I have continuously gotten the same question from my K students. "Miss Kendall, what is Easter?"

It is odd that we have spent so much time and energy focusing on Easter.  My bosses aren't Christian.  Most of the students at my school have no affiliation with Christianity.  Basically, my school has us doing all these things because it's what they think people in the States do.  And while everything we have done is what I would consider the fluff of Easter, the Easter eggs and Easter baskets and Easter candy, I can't help but be drawn back to the heart of what Easter really is.  Every time my students ask me what Easter is, I want to sit them down and tell them how awesome of a day it is; a day on which we were redeemed and saved and bought and freed.  But how could you possibly explain that to a 5 year-old who isn't even familiar with who Jesus is?  It breaks my heart that these little children have never been introduce to God's greatness, grace, love and mercy.  And so when I hear the question, "Miss Kendall, what is Easter" I do my best to stumble through an explanation suitable for 5 year-olds who have no familiarity with Christianity.

I hope that you are all reminded of God's greatness and power and love and majesty and awesomeness as we creep ever closer to Easter morning.  I pray that you remember the sacrifice and the pain , as well as the love of Christ.  I find myself rejoicing one moment at the gift Christ gave me but then weeping in the next because of the pain and torture he endured on my behalf, for a very forgetful, selfish sinner.  He's so good and we are so unworthy.  Luckily we have been bought and redeemed and no longer have to be tied down by our sin and unworthiness and faults.  Hallelujah!!!  We are loved more deeply than we could ever possibly understand.

I am desperately wishing I was back in the States to celebrate this joyous season with you all.  You have my love from afar!

-KendallCooke

It's Nice to Have Fun

Today was a great day I am pleased to say.  This morning all the K classes at my school went on a field trip.  My school is known for taking notoriously boring and draining field trips (think 80+ 4, 5, and 6 year-olds at a Folk History Museum) so I was a little nervous as we set off this morning.  We were taking the annual Easter field trip to a park in Seoul to play games, hang out outside of the school for awhile, and have an Easter egg hunt.  To put it simply, it was an awesome morning!!!  The park we went to was huge and green and full of flowers and had a pond.  It was so nice to be experiencing nature again.  I unfortunately haven't had the opportunity to just enjoy nature since I've come to Korea.  Most of the parks I've been to have a handful of trees and concrete.  There aren't yards and flower gardens and trees to climb, which made going to this amazing park today that much more fabulous.  I'm not sure if my kids liked it more or me.  It was very enjoyable to get to hang out and play games and not have to worry about teaching curriculum or correcting every single speaking mistake.  I got to see my Kindergarten kids just be kids, and it reminded me that they aren't little robots that I'm teaching that can sit still for hours and remember everything I tell them.  They're just kids!  It's incredible how much this simple reminder lifted my spirits for the rest of the day and made teaching, though sometimes frustrating, fun and rewarding again.  I pray that this little gem of knowledge stays with me.  I hope that everyday I am able to see my students not as a collective mind that needs to soak up my teaching but as 9 individual, funny, loving, growing, malleable and impressionable children.

In other news, I went back to the Dr. about my ankle today.  He said that the fracture is practically healed, though he recommended I not exercise, run or play any sports for another 3 or 4 weeks.  I've decided that Dr. was just being overly cautious.  Hopefully sometime this weekend I'll be able to get a run in and test out the ankle.  The weather is beautiful, and I can feel myself die a little bit inside every day that I'm stuck sitting around instead of outside being active.  I can't wait to get back outdoors!!!

I love you and miss you all dearly!

It's ALL About Him,

KendallCooke

SPRING!!!

Ahhh...I haven't written in forever.  My most sincere apologies!

Spring has finally reached Seoul.  The weather is warmer.  The birds are singing.  The sun is shining.  As the weather becomes ever more beautiful and I am able to spend more time outdoors in the midst of nature's beauty, I find Seoul growing on me more and more.  The frustrations of work and the inevitable "run-ins" with Koreans seem so much more bearable when I can get outside and walk around and explore.  It is a much welcomed change!

Spring's arrival also brought the start of the baseball season in Korea.  I think Opening Day here was the same day as in the States.  One of my co-workers had a friend coming into Seoul to visit for a couple days and had asked me, along with another co-worker, if we'd like to go to a baseball game with her on Saturday.  I didn't have plans, apart from the endless LSAT studying and research on law schools that has consumed my life, so I told her I would go.  I was rather excited, honestly.  The day was beautiful, and the company was good.  It looked like it would be a good day.

I have this terrible habit of unintentionally assuming various things in Korea will be the same as they are back home.  So when I thought baseball, I had this image of Major League Baseball in the States.  As I have found, it usually happens that my assumption based on the American image is so far from reality.  We went to the game, and the tickets were sold out.  So then we bought tickets from some guy at about 4x actual price.  We got into the stadium eventually after wandering around the entire stadium trying to get into like 4 different entrances (because our tickets were only in Korea) and found out that our section of bleachers was general admission.  We were about 30 minutes early and were pleased to see there were still some seats available though not many.  However, once we began asking if the seats that we saw were really available or not, we found out that they were ALL being held for friends/family that were on their way to the game.

As it got closer and closer to game time, we began to notice that there were just mobs, hundreds of people, standing along the back fence behind the bleachers without seats.  They way, way, way oversell tickets so hundreds of people that come to the games either stand the entire time or sit on the stairs or wherever they can find a spot.  It was absolute chaos.  When the game actually began, I was standing shoulder to shoulder with Koreans with 2 rows of people standing in front of me and another row of people standing behind me.  Before the first inning was even over, we decided to leave.  It was so stressful and crowded and frustrating.

Leaving was just another issue.  We couldn't even find the stairs for a couple minutes, because people were sitting on them like they were seats.  We crawled over all these angry Koreans so we could get out of the stadium, and then we just all stood there and laughed about it together.  It was so wild!  I'm pretty used to the crowds here but this was just overkill.  I couldn't believe it.  We ended up heading to grab some food and just hang out and talk.  It was still a fun adventure to look back on, even if it was extremely frustrating at the time.  I know next time to go about 2 hours early or so in order to get an actual seat....just another lesson learned in Korea.

Well my Sunday is coming to a close just as yours is beginning.  Have a great week!!!

It's ALL About Him,

KendallCooke