Michael and I talked to my parents yesterday. We could call in the morning Sunday and catch them early evening Saturday. My mom sounded good, but she is needing a lot of assistance. Home-health people come for giving bath, for example. She is also receiving some physical therapy-type help. Her appetite is not consistent, but overall my dad said she is eating pretty well. She called my dad a saint. Now there's a blessing - to greatly appreciate your spouse!! Please continue to pray for her. Nothing will be decided on the underlying colon problem until she is stronger.
Several times last week I told Michael I would do something "AFTER my test." It got to be a joke between us. My Korean language test was this morning. There was a written part (which went fine but really could hardly do justice to the amount of material), oral (I was middle of the pack - we did it with the teacher in front of each other!), and listening (the hardest part). I enjoyed learning, but it was very time consuming. I am trying to arrange a couple of people to meet with me for conversation. Practice is the only way I am going to make any real progress. I had a few experiences last week with money/prices that were satisfying. For example, I had 5 10,000 won bills at the grocery store and could ask for a 50,000 bill. I also understood prices a few times - Michael's haircut; seamstress, lunch on campus.
I will celebrate my new-found freedom with a couple of day trips. Thursday 3 of us from class will go to Busan to an art exhibit and then to Costco. Next Monday FLIK (foreign life in Korea office at HHI) has a trip to an artist's studio followed by lunch of spicy duck bulgogi at a farm. Michael has a couple of days off next week, and we will probably do the Hyundai motor manufacturing tour. I will be catching up on accounting class preparation also.
I had two lovely lunches last week. The dean of international education and the person in charge of exchange programs took me out along with the college of business dean. All three have last name Kim!! We went to a place out in the country with a beautiful setting of Hanok style building and mountains with trees changing colors. The lunch was really good - lots of variety, as usual, with traditional side dishes. I think the individual rooms can be set up with low or high table. I suspect they booked a room with high table and chairs because of me. I need to post a picture - I will be the tall one in the middle!! Then Friday Professor Kim took me and Professor Jang and also a new business professor out for lunch to a place out in the country... another lovely setting (with all low tables and floor seating). The new business professor is the only tenure-track female in the COB. Her PhD is from Arizona State, and she spent 3 or 4 years at Bowling Green State before coming here. We had a nice time and some good laughs about marrying farmers or marrying to improve language skills.
Some good foods lately have been chestnuts and persimmons. Keun Yung (Professor Jang's wife) often brings me something like that when we get together during the week. She has practiced Korean with me before going to her exercise class on campus. I also have eaten a lot of sweet potatoes - much smaller than in the States and not orange ... more of a brownish-yellow. I boil them and leave the skins on. Two or so make a good snack, and they are firm enough to carry in my bag. At the grocery store I also buy a few kinds of mushrooms regularly and usually cook them and put them on my frequenty dinner salads. Great for cooking and adding to soup (made with soyvbean paste soup stock - a bit spicy and red in color)) is whole, peeled garlic. I can get a small bag (20 or so) for 1,500 won ($1.50 US). What a deal.
On a more interesting note, Professor Kim took me to a place a week or two ago that is soup with pig back bones in it - about 3 or so vertebrae connected. He thought I might find the soup too spicy, but it was very flavorful. He had to help me with the chopsticks to remove the bones - it was kind of awkward and heavy. Then I could use my chopsticks to pick at the meat. More than once I have recalled my vegetarian years and been glad they are behind me. Michael and I had shabu shabu over the weekend. That meal suits him very well, and we can walk to a place in our neighborhood to have it.
We are enjoying church. I think Michael especially likes the laid back style and modern music. The weekend before one of the leaders asked if I would say the prayer the next week ... I said sure. (I did write it out). The fellowship afterwards is good with such a small core group (and Michael likes to eat the gimbap if we are not going to the Indian restaurant with the Bakers). People are very welcoming of newcomers, which is probably no surprise, because there are many people here for short periods of time. We are also attending a Bible study the hour before the service and finding that to keep us thinking during the week.
We have heard about a couple of Thanksgiving gatherings and will see how that develops. My first thought was "what can I make with my limited kitchen set up, lack of ingredients at store, and catching a taxi with whatever I make?!" We usually spend Thanksgiving (and Michael's birthday) in Arizona with my family and the extended Mexican side of the family, so we will be thinking of them this year.
We pray that the Lord will make us thankful as his word says "Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in all circumstances, give thanks." It's very easy when things are going well, but it is something to keep in mind in difficult circumstances .... which can come upon people so quickly. The Lord bless and keep you and your families and loved ones.
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