Happy 2011 from Cheonan-City, South Korea. A lot of things have happened since the last time I wrote a newsletter and I’d like to share some of those with you, including some good news that you probably can’t even imagine.
The most traumatic event was having my mom get deathly ill during the time I was visiting home. I had planned on going to St. Louis and Kansas City but decided against it because of a lack of money. That turned out to be a wise decision because Mom ended up being admitted to the hospital and having high-risk surgery. I have never come so close to seeing one of my parents nearly die. I thought it would be a routine surgery but the anesthesiologist frightened us all when he told us we could lose her during the operation. This was the last thing I needed to hear. I was so upset that my brother thought I had gone overboard with being angry and even telling God so. We waited and waited and waited, not just in the OR waiting room but also in ICU but by the Grace of God, she came through and the first sentence I remember her saying was, “I’m alive.” Her voice was quite hoarse and her personality a bit more blunt than usual, but I was so thankful that I got a second chance at having a mom. I never quite worked out why all this happened, but I think at the very least it was a good reminder to us not to take Mom for granted. I talk to Mom on the phone quite often and she seems to be doing quite well, with a second surgery scheduled for March.
I have continued teaching English at the same university since I came here in April 2008 and am learning a lot about myself, Korea, Korean and how to be a better English teacher. But I still have a lot to learn and I have many moments of frustration and loneliness as I continue to develop relationships with people in hopes of developing a strong circle of friends. But I’m no longer wondering what it might be like to be in a long-term relationship with someone or trying to find the face of the one I will marry someday. After dating her for exactly one year, I proposed to Sinae Park (박시내) and she even said yes (You may pick yourself up off the floor if you will). We haven’t set a date yet but are hoping for either fall or winter of this year. Hopefully we will finalize all of this after I meet her parents for the first time on February 3rd, three days before my birthday. For you curious folks, I’m attaching a picture of Sinae and I for you to evaluate how good of a couple we make. For your information, this picture was taken at a wedding, but not ours, mind you.
With this news in mind, we are planning on living in Korea for at least two years after we get married and I am hoping that if God is willing, that we will be able to find jobs in America and that we will live there for a year or two so she can get a better understanding on what makes us Americans tick. But of course, as I am learning after living in Korea for nearly three years, it is very difficult to comprehend the way another group of people think.
I would love to hear more about what is happening in your corner of the world, wherever that may be. So feel free respond to this letter if you are so inclined. I pray that this will be a year of blessings and growth for all of us, and that we can come a little bit closer to experiencing God’s Kingdom on earth, with God’s help.
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