Yes, a lot has happened recently.
Yes. it would take a long time to chronicle all the ventures.
In lieu of another "this is where I went" post, I thought I'd write a "this is how I'm feeling" post. I have a feeling that this may go on a bit longer than I'd originally intended, but...oh well.
I'd heard about the process of culture shock. It typically happens over the course of 6 months (give or take a month). During that time, certain things can be very difficult for expats to deal with, including food, loneliness, and...well...culture. I have battles with those, but I think that my biggest battles have been with things that I've been battling with long before I came to Korea.
Don't get me wrong, life is fine. I mean, the weather's incredible here (at the moment). But, just like everyone, things wear on me some days more than others.
This morning was one of those. It was hard to be motivated, and I felt like it took all I had to jump hurdles over the mental blocks that popped up as I was teaching.
Then, Kloud came along.
Kloud (yep, that is his English name) is a guy who's in his 20s -- or maybe 30s? It's really hard to tell with Koreans -- that I met during a group discussion a few weeks ago. He's very friendly and has awesome taste in eye wear. One day, I'll take a picture so you can see his epic specs.
He came into my classroom with a red shopping bag. "I have a meal for you," he said to my student and me. Oh, one of my 9:00am students had come a bit early and we were chatting. He then handed us sweet potatoes that he had grown along with a carton of milk and left. A few minutes later, after a few other students came in, he returned (ah, I should mention, Kloud is not one of my students), and gave them sweet potatoes and drinks.
It completely made my day, and I told him that. I then explained what the phrase "made my day" means.
Thanks, Kloud.
