Victory over the Darkness

I can hardly believe it. Our class has ended.

It all started a year ago. I was driving to work one morning, listening to the local Christian radio station, and a song came on. For the life of me, I cannot remember the name of the song or the artist, but message was clear: "Don't expect others to do what God has called YOU to do." The lyrics stayed in my mind and thoughts, and I felt very much that the Lord was speaking to me. For several months, I had felt a that more intentional discipleship was needed in our church. What it would actually look like was yet to be determined, but I decided I needed to obey the prompting of the Lord.

So I began talking with the head pastor at our church and also with Jody about what that could look like. Big group vs. Small(er) group. Bible as curriculum vs. separate book curriculum with a heavy Scripture focus. Sunday morning vs. Mid-week evening. Shorter commitment/smaller workload vs. Longer commitment/greater workload. We went back and forth on ideas as to what would suit the Body here in Englewood best.

In the end, we settled on the book Victory over the Darkness, by Neil Anderson, and Jody and I decided that we would co-teach a small class on Sunday mornings. We started the end of September, limiting the class to under 10 people. We asked for commitment and a willingness to invest in the material during the week, to memorize Scripture that was important to the lesson and to keep confidential personal information that was discussed in the class.

Thirteen chapters later, I am so thrilled that I stepped out and obeyed the Lord. There's nothing like digging into Scripture in the context of a group and allowing people to process what the Word of God is saying to them. And perhaps the most thrilling part of it is observing the Word of God changing them as they submit themselves to His Lordship in their lives. And, as one of the teachers of the class, I marveled at how God began working in me, as well, as we went through the chapters. It reminded me again and again of what the writer of Hebrews wrote concerning the Word of God in Hebrews 4:12.

 For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.

Definitely, if you are hungry to grow in your walk with God but you don't know where to start, I would encourage you to consider this book. It is easy to read, easy to understand, and so helpful in explaining the foundational truths of our faith. I personally recommend it for its heavy Scriptural emphasis. And even if you have been walking with the Lord for a long time, this book will renew your love for the Lord by taking you back to the basics.

We can never get too far from the Cross, right?

Well, if you have any questions about the class or the book, just let me know!

A Little Update in the Beens' lives...

At the moment, Jody is in Osaka, Japan. He has gone on a 36 hour run to get his visa, and he should, Lord willing, return this evening. I saw him off to the airport limousine here in Suji yesterday morning and heard from him when he'd gone through customs at the Incheon airport. Apparently Americans can only stay in Korea on a tourist visa for 30 days, not 90 like we had thought. Woops!

The trip should be a tight one for him, as it takes 24 hours to process the visa. I hope he will not have to miss his flight and catch a later one.

Once he has his visa, Jody will start working on Monday, the 3rd. He has yet to observe any classes and knows only that he'll probably have to wing it those first few days. Also, it is very Korean for things to change last-minute. So nothing is set in stone, as Westerners tend to think. We talk and negotiate, we decide and shake hands on the deal. The deal is done. Finished. And your word is everything. If you don't fulfill your promise, you are not trustworthy. Here, it is not the same. Jody's boss has thrown him some curveballs already, and so we're praying for grace and wisdom, as well as favor in this beginning phase of his job. Pray for him.

I, on the other hand, am plugging away at my teaching. My first class is 6 children all around 9 years old. And they're as silent as the grave. We're working on getting them to talk and to be more creative. Please pray for creativity. Children in Korea are robots and do not know how to think creatively at all. It is the greatest tragedy, and I'm desperately in need of new ideas.

My second class is 9 children - far more advanced in speaking and understanding - and much more confident in their English. My old students Danny, Nina, Bryant and David are in there. The five other children are from Korean classes. These children are almost out of control. I am praying for wisdom in dealing with their behavior, because they are so unkind to one another. They are concerned only with being #1, and they will laugh at each other's mistakes. It breaks my heart. Mrs. Kim and I are discussing what should be done.

The third block is planning time for me, and I desperately need it. Usually Jody will meet me for dinner at the Korean restaurant downstairs (yay!) and then I return upstairs to grade or type up tests/quizzes, etc.

My last class is my Step 3 advanced class. I have 7 children, ages ~11-13. There are 5 boys and 2 girls. As time has passed and they adjust to my system, they are doing much better. Summaries are slowly improving, quiz grades are decent, and conversation in general is becoming more congenial. I am praying for victory with these children, as well.

Please pray for both Jody and me as we seek to be lights and truly effective teachers in our schools.

So that is all for this update. I should go and get ready for school. Love to you all.

my first week...

tonight marks the completion of my first week teaching back at English Reading Club, and i thought it was time for an update... the week seems to have gone by quickly, but my body feels every single day. i have to say, honestly, i am SO ready for this weekend.

there is a mix of good and bad in being back at ERC. i am thankful that i don't have to learn the ropes at a completely new job. i know this school well. i know my boss and the secretary and a few of the teachers. i know the procedures, the role i play, and most of the material that should be covered in what level. so, in many ways i feel like i never left this place! there is much comfort and peace that comes with it.

on the other hand, i left so suddenly back in march, that i never finished the books we were studying and never got to say goodbye to my old students, a handful of whom i'd had for the whole two years. now i have mostly new students, and i have to start all over again. but not completely over (i.e. re-use old materials)... because i do have SOME old students. ARGH!

as for jody, he continues on the job hunt. although there is an abundance of english teaching jobs here, it is wise to be selective; many English academies can prove to be lemons here in korea. also, we are hoping for a job with similar hours to mine - in the afternoon - here in suji.... and not a 45 minute busride away. strangely enough, those jobs are fewer and the HR of these schools seems very poor and non-communicative (as HR seems to be everywhere). so we continue to pray and trust God for His provision. please join us in praying for the Lord to lead jo to the right position. overall, we are peaceful and trusting. God is on the throne!

we are both very excited about tomorrow, as we are inviting good friends over for a potluck dinner. since we live a little further from the main hub of downtown suji, it's a little harder for people to get to us. but we want to offer our apartment as a place for people to come... with space larger than a 10x10 room.

we'll let you know how it goes! in the meantime, keep up your prayers and communication. we love to hear from you!

the.beens@gmail.com

where is may going?

the first week in may is already finished. i'm in mild shock. how time passes.

so thursday night i met with my boss and expressed to her my concern about my voice and the effect its' absence is having on ERC as a business. mrs. kim was amazing, and said that every morning as she prays for me and what to do, there is complete peace in her heart about me. she said the Lord has totally filled her heart with rest and she's not concerned at all.

(this is a miracle.)

also, the parents of my students have not called in two weeks. she said that if they had been calling (i.e. pestering), then she would have been more stressed out and seeking some solution. as it is, their absence makes this waiting period so much more bearable.

(knowing korean parents, this is also a miracle!)

i go to the hospital for a voice test on may 14th. mrs. kim said she is content to wait until after that to find some solution, whether it's to hire a temporary replacement... to send me home early... whatever. i encouraged her to make the best decision for the school and not to worry about me. i am content to abide by her decision. she said she feels very strongly that the Lord has some plan for me and for her through this situation, and that we just need more time to wait for God to make a good solution clear to us both.

thank you for your prayers. after talking with mrs. kim i feel a lot more peaceful about where i am - whether it's to stay here or to go home a little early. personally, i'd love to get wedding planning done sooner, but i don't want to be apart from jody. either way, i know the Lord is going to make His way clear to us both.

in other news, jody and i hung out with the teachers at his school last night and this afternoon. last night was pizza night (and taboo) at katie and lindy's apartment. quite a group assembled, and i met a lot of new faces. it was great! then, today a bunch of us went into itaewon to my favorite mexican restaurant to celebrate cinco de mayo. afterwards jody and i hung out with chris and alex, his coworkers. it was great to finally meet this couple, who met and married in taiwon. they arrived in korea 4 months ago. anyway, i am excited to finally meet them and hang out. hopefully it will happen more often now.

okay... it's late and i should hop in the shower. morning and church comes very early! love to you all. write soon.

hmmm... so, today is a little warmer. and i can actually SEE the sky. amazing. it's supposed to be blue!!

it's friday. YAY!

jo has had half days all this week b/c the day school he works at has had off for easter (a christian school). he's only had to teach the afternoon school kids. it's been wonderful. we have gotten to hang out in the morning... have breakfast, run exciting errands like paying bills and recharging cell phones. it's been fabulous. boo for next week, back to normal.

i'm glad it's friday. (did i say that already?)

my prep class took their robin hood test yesterday, so today is fun day. next monday we start the secret garden. for julie's sake, i'm not doing an adventure story... she hates them and i guess robin hood was just too boyish for her. ha!

my last class continues to be on this MWF schedule, and i'm absolutely loving the extra hour in the evenings on tues/thurs. usually i'm getting home ~9:45, so it's great to get home just a little bit earlier. last night jody and i commenced once again on the puzzle we started back in december. we have a LOT left to do, but still, it was nice to have enough time in the evening to work on it.

so i'm trying to be a better communicator, since i've been so MIA lately. please continue to pray for us. we know this is such a critical time - making decisions and trusting the Lord to form us as a couple to serve Him.

hope to hear from you all soon. be in touch.

i am tired tonight, but i thought it was high time i wrote something. an apology to my faithful blog-readers. i have become sadly delinquent since jo invaded my life.

so yes, i am alive... breathing...

starting last monday, my advanced step 3 class moved to three days a week - MWF. it has been a really strange feeling not to have the children in that class every night, and the past few times there's been a frenzied feel to the class. we are trying to accomplish a lot each week in a much shorter slot of time. in some ways, it could be compared to a 9th grade english class back home studying on block schedule, and i am having to prepare a schedule for the parents and students to know ahead of time exactly what we'll be doing. it's weird for me, because i am not a trained teacher... and i'm being asked to do what teachers go to school and get their master's for. i feel a little bit inadequate, and it's really difficult to know if i can ask these children to keep up with the pace we're going at. i fear comprehension and these children's sleep and sanity are being sacrificed on the altar of "efficient" learning schedules.

anyway... hoping we'll find a balance and rhythm as a class and get in the flow soon.

in other news, europe, here we come!! jo and i have bought our tickets for our little backpacking adventure.... (drum roll, please) yay! aug 30 - sept 23. basic planning and research has commenced. jo is furiously searching for hiking shoes and sandals online. it's quite amusing.

there are so many other decisions to be made in the next 5-6 months... flying home, wedding details, flying to texas, the wedding, williamsburg, europe, back home, back to korea... my job, jody needing to find a job, an apartment, etc... if you don't have enough things to pray for in your own life, feel free to intercede for jo and me. the knowledge that the Lord is leading us is very comforting... even more so, to know that He is moving His children to intercede for one another. so - on that note - let me know how i can be praying for you, too.

bear one another's burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ. -galatians 6,2

it has been a while since i've written. i guess there's a lot going on here. but first... happy valentine's day! jody stuffed a bear with t-shirts for me and left them with a little chocolate in el apartmento.. knowing full well that i hate teddy bears. LOL. he's ridiculous. now the t-shirts are happily being worn and the de-stuffed teddy bear is no longer with us. ::snif snif::

for school i am trying to organize all the copies of paper i have accumulated from teaching the past year and a half. dictation papers, vocabulary lists, study questions, grammar worksheets, fun worksheets, tests, quizzes... all papers that i want to keep and use again in the future with new classes. they have all just been in this growing mound, and now it's time to tame it.

last night brittany and stefanie came over for our tuesday night get-together/prayer/bible study time. it was brittany's last, as she leaves sunday morning for home. it is starting to settle in for all of us, but the most reoccurring feeling is one of thankfulness. the Lord brought the girls into my life about one year ago, when i was so discouraged and lonely. i will always see them as an answer to a big prayer. and i am thankful that stefanie remains.

my internet has been really bad lately, so it's been hard to connect with people back home as much. today the internet repairman came, so i'm hoping that i will no longer have huge delays when we talk. girls, i miss you and hope we can catch up soon! call me :)

i don't know if i mentioned this earlier, but our church has finally moved into the new building. they had been talking about it since i started going back in october, so this move was a big one and long-awaited by all the congregation. it's in a town called gu-seong, so we have to take a different (and unfortunately, less reliable) bus to get there. also, the time has moved up to the morning, so we have to wake up earlier. still, i am thankful for the wonderful body that God has led jody and me to.

hope all is well back home. please continue to be in touch!

hmmm...

change is in the air. apparently the groundhog didn't see his shadow this year, so spring could be arriving much sooner than it did last year. yay! the temperatures are in the high 40s-low 50s and i hear the birds chirping on the way to work. i am so happy for the warmer weather, though this winter has been mild overall.

on a sad note, my dear friend brittany is returning to the states in less than 2 weeks. she has accepted a job back in maine. it is pretty amazing how the job opened up, but she is so qualified for it that i am truly excited for her to have this opportunity. most people who leave korea really don't know what they're going back home to, so i'm really glad that the Lord has gone before her and prepared a clear path for her. still, i am going to miss her tremendously, to say nothing of stefanie. they have been roommates and done everything together since they came from new zealand over a year ago. please be in prayer for stefanie, that God will lift her up and make her plans clear. it is so hard to feel left behind.

also, i am planning to renew my contract until the end of july, in time for me to return to va for daniel and courtney's wedding. what a wonderful time to look forward to! i am so excited for them both and truly prayerful that God's hand will be on every detail of the planning, as well as the ceremony and reception itself. may God be glorified.

the school year has begun here in korea, so children are starting back up after vacation. now i have the joy and privilege of hearing the whining and complaining about how terrible their school teachers are. :) sadly, i am also losing two students because they are going to middle school. once in middle school they don't have enough time for their after-school academies. or perhaps it is because they go to one academy where there is more intensive learning of all the subjects they need to stay up with their peers.

last weekend john, sarah, jody and i went into seoul for the star wars exhibit! everything we saw was the original used in the movies. despite the crowds and the heat, it was still pretty amazing to see stuff we've loved watching since we were kids....

there are john and sarah at the ticket booth...

is that chewbacca? yes, it is.

oh, the drama... LOL.

requests from the children
those students of mine who are familiar with american wonders have put out a request. i am humbly sending a shout-out to those who love to put care packages together to send to the other side of the world. the list is as follows:

1. airheads***** <= that's 5 stars on the ruth's cool list
2. fireballs***
3. licorice*
4. sour heads (?)
5. jolly ranchers*****
6. nerds*****
7. twizzlers (okay, okay, that's just for me.)
   

i will also be teaching the books the little princess and anne of green gables in the future and would dearly love the DVDs. if you want to contribute either of those, i bless you over and over again.
if you need my address, just email me and i'll send it on to you. thanks a bunch, guys!

highlights from today

• got new glasses. they're pretty amazing. john got some new ones, too. mine were more expensive than his. slightly depressed about that.
• bumped into eunice on our way to lotte mart. decided to meet up for lunch.
• got free lunch coupons to macdonalds from the glasses store. decided we'd get macdonalds. i wish all decisions were as easy as that one.
• pulled out peter's first tooth. maternal feelings abound.
• taught my 2nd class more phone english. two hours later danny calls during my 3rd class. decided to pick it up - breaking a cardinal rule. i will not be owned by a small piece of metal.
  

  "miss ruth!"
  "hello. yes? who is this?"
  "this is danny, miss ruth!!! i don't know the homework. #6!!"
  "just a second, danny." (3rd class children giggling.
  they can hear danny yelling into the phone)
  "ok."
  "it's on page 19, danny. go to page 19."
  "ok, miss ruth. thank you!"
  "bubye, danny. love you!"

• talked about right and wrong, black and white... and that ever-increasing grey area in my 4th class. hoping for opportunities to make these kids think.

hostessing, lunch with parentals, a visit to the war museum, and phone english

this past week has been a busy one, though refreshing, too. having john and sarah stay with jody and me has been a real treat. they are the first connection from home since lauren to come to my apartment and really be in my world. it was funny to hear sarah say how similar i am to my sister rebekah. it made me long for the family and the familiarity of home! in any case, the four of us have been busy when jody and i have not been at work. and i must confess i have been prayerful as to how to balance work with time with the Lord, time with jo, and just time to get the basic necessities of life accomplished. much prayer would be appreciated.

on saturday i was finally able to accept sehwan and sehee's parents' invitation to lunch. we went to a korean restaurant near suji, and it was truly a pleasant time to catch up with julia (the mother) and to engage with their father for the first time. julia is considering homeschooling her boys, so i was able to put in a few good words as to the benefits of homeschooling to her husband, who's against the idea. it was a good discussion, and i was able to honestly recommend homeschooling, in light of korea's extremely poor educational system. also, i know that sehwan and sehee have the personal drive for excellence that would really benefit them. so i guess we'll see.

after lunch on saturday i joined jo, john and sarah in seoul. they had visited the DMZ while i was at lunch, so from there we went on to the korean war museum. it was pretty amazing to see what we did. unfortunately, we didn't get to see everything because the museum closed at 6. from there we went to dinner. sarah and i tried to hide the chips and salsa from jody. he is passionate about a certain kind of salsa. haha.

as for my children, today i was teaching my 2nd class a little phone english. you know, that thing called manners that parents no longer teach their children when it comes to communicating over the phone. well, i'm taking it upon myself to teach these children how to talk on the phone correctly. :) we were rolling. they loved pretending to use my cell phone, even hanging up on me and watching the dramatic exaggerated expression of shock on my face. they have my phone number, so now i'm expecting random phone calls from my children.

"hello, miss ruth!"
"hello. who's this?"
"it's me, miss ruth!"
"yay! who's 'me'?"
"i am wendy, miss ruth!"
"oh, hi wendy! what are you up to?"
"i don't know.... bye!"
"uh, bye, wendy. love you!"

sad news- this afternoon one of my kids accidentally knocked my glasses off my face and broke the rim. the lense totally popped out. i've glued it back together, but it's not very tight. i may have to buy some new glasses while i'm here. :(

** please pray for me to know how long to renew my contract for. i am tentatively thinking until the end of july, so i will be back in virginia in time for my brother's wedding. please pray that the Lord will make plans firm and make His plans and purposes clear.

old students...

today brought slightly sad and also good news. one of my favorite students, phil kim, is taking a break from ERC. he has been one of my advanced students from day one, and i have grown to love him very much. for some reason his mother feels he needs a break and is so switching him to another academy... at least for this month. hopefully he will return. it is so hard to lose students who i have invested so much in. i am praying for God to give me a bigger heart to include new students.. and for Him to bring just the right ones to fill the seats of those who - for one reason or another - have to leave ERC.

also today one of my favorite little students who i also had from the beginning, john, left back in august to go to an international school in suwon. today he came and visited our class. it was wonderful and exciting. his mother stopped in and we were able to catch up for a bit. what a blessing and joy it is to connect with people who i am starting to have a little history with. it has been, after all, over a year now that i have known some of these people and have been able to develop a little history with them. God has indeed been good to me. apparently john will return to my class for at least vacation time during the summer. yay!

little note: john had lost a tooth since i saw him in august. it is our custom that those who lose a tooth can pick a little goodie or two out of a bin i have. so, of course john had not forgotten THAT! he was most anxious to pick something out of it. and the girls also wanted something, so i had to say, "well, you have to lose a tooth first!"

john replied... "i can pull your tooth off!"

LOL. i love my children!

busy busy

i am thankful to say that the weather has been a lot warmer than it was this time last year. it has definitely been above freezing point a lot, and that is so welcome considering the amount of time spent outside walking to and from places... work, church... pretty much everywhere!

my advanced little ones (the ones i love and talk about ALL the time) have been learning 'Joy to the World' for the song contest our school is doing next thursday. they've pretty much memorized all 4 verses, and cara and peter can belt it out like nobody's business. i'm amazed. they've also been working on cursive, and i'm pretty impressed. they seem enthusiastic aboutl earning it, too. i cannot wait until they feel confident to write in it equally as well as in print. i have to say danny's cursive penmanship is just beautiful.

my prep class of girls is ridiculous. they are so dramatic. we're studying little women and it seems to be a good book for them. i hope i can get my hands on a copy of the movie, because i think it would just be really satisfying for them to see the movie after reading through the book. they love acting out the part where jo is 'rodrigo' having to save his love 'zara' from the evil 'hugo'. lol. oh the drama!

and my last class is getting into the groove with the magician's nephew. sometimes it seems like i'm pulling teeth, but i think they are learning.

overall, i think everybody is worn out and ready for a break. next thursday is the song contest, and friday i fly out for germany. i cannot believe how quickly the time has passed, and i hope and pray that i can prepare my heart enough to be back there... with all that goes on here!

on saturday jo and i went to the COEX aquarium. he'd never seen it, and we had a great time, despite the fact that it was really crowded and - unlike americans - koreans don't seem to be bothered by hordes of people pushing you on all sides. lol.
then sunday after church we headed into seoul for dinner and an opera. we went to the seoul fine arts center opera house for the french musical rendition of 'don juan'. it was really a great time and a wonderful evening. i am so thankful to my boss mrs. kim for her wonderful gift.

God has been good, and He continues to lead with His peace. i continue to praise Him for all that He's doing - at school, at church... in everything He has been good.

Miss Ruth: "Does anyone know what 'violence' means?" (We're reading the Jigsaw Jones Mystery series.)

Christine: "It's something that little kids can't do."

uproarious laughter.

my precious children...
here's the shot with heidi that i promised. she's so dear. and she got a new hair-do this week, of which she was extremely proud. she was sure to include it in the get-well cards we all wrote and decorated for peter this week. he had to stay home with a terrible cold.
and then there's the most recent vocab development, which all the children seem to be picking up so much more quickly than such useful words like "there" and "didn't". it has dramatically changed the air in the classroom - literally.
i don't know where, but the most fascinating word in a child's vocabulary has begun appearing out of thin air. (why this constant reference to air, you ask?) it is ::drumroll please::

peter: wendy! wendy! no farting!
miss ruth: peter!! where did you learn that word?!
peter: (uncontrollable giggles)

the little ones are eating what we translate as 'fish bread'. they are dough-covered red beans in the shape of a fish...the koreans love 'em! a grandmother outside our building cooks and sells them for 250won (25cents).

the weather is getting colder, so i'm having to pull out my sweaters and start making tea both at work and at night after walking home.

last weekend emily took me to a flower market in yangjae and then to cosco. we bought cheese and hamburger meat and buns so jody and i could make hamburgers. that exciting event happened monday night after work. it was rather ridiculous how excited we both were. mrs. kim even gave me the school's microwave (since we don't use it there anymore!), and jody was able to thaw the meat. haha. it was almost like being home. jody, who is from tx, is really missing his beef, and this korean dietary emphasis on vegetables and fish is causing him to waste away. where's the steak, mashed potatoes and gravy?!

i am continuing to read e.m. bounds book on prayer. his thorough understanding of the power, importance, and results of prayer encourage me daily as i seek the Father's heart. i sense i am growing a lot in my attitude towards the Lord. the biggest area is surrender. now that i am more in that place, i am wondering why i have struggled so much with the Lord and His purposes for me. if anything, i am more willing to drop everything and run at His call. it's a good place to be and i'm not anxious to leave it... it's a place of peace and grace for which i am so grateful.

be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication,
with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. and the peace of God,
which passes all understanding, shall guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
-philippians 4,6-7

this is a tribute to my children, who have made my time in korea so meaningful.

i love them.

here is danny. danny is 8 years old, and i have had him almost the entire time i have been in korea. the first few months i had him, he didn't say a word. i marveled at his neat handwriting. then, miraculously, one day after several months he opened up his mouth and glorious english came out. this boy is incredibly sweet and persistent and genuinely cares for his little sister, who i also taught for a short while. danny is a perfectionist and struggles to stay up with the rest of the class, but he never gives up. he works so hard to communicate. i am immensely proud of him and am reminded of him when i wonder if my teaching is effective.

here is john. i am so sad to say that i am no longer teaching john, because he has moved to an international, all-english kindergarten. still, for the whole year i had him, he was a joy to teach. he brought so much life and ridiculousness to our class, and i've missed him a lot since he left. an out-going boy, competitive, quick, and creative, he was the first to finish the warm-ups (where they have to write a story and use their imaginations... which they LOVE doing) and the first to jump at a game. his english was amazing, and i often forgot that english wasn't his first language. i miss him.

this little snapshopt is one of the only ones i have of heidi. i need to get another of her. (she must have been absent the day i got one with the others.) in any case, this little picture does almost nothing to convey the sweentess of this little one. heidi has been in my class for almost a year, and i knew almost immediately that she was a christian, because she was always talking about Jesus and how much she loves her older brother. it is through her, that the Lord has answered small heart desires for things like a new wallet, a pen, and lip gloss. how could she know how the Lord uses her? she's a jewel to have in my class.

this is my wendy, who is 7 years old. last fall i taught her phonics and how to read, and now she is creating her own stories with dialogue and present, past, and future tense. she's amazing. if i came to korea just for her, it would be worth it. she takes life by the horns and dominates it. i am proud of her and love her so much. please notice she is wearing my glasses - upside down.

and this is peter. peter is sehwan's younger brother, and the dearest little thing ever. he is extremely competitive when it comes to dictation. he is the master speller in the class. he would totally win the spelling bees back in the states. and i have found out that he is a romantic, too. LOL. sehwan teases him about having lots of little female friends and drawing stars, hearts, and pictures of princes and princesses in his notebook. also, i have had to pull him and cara apart on occasion. (oh dear. i promise i have not been encouraging this kind of behavior.) i love this boy so much. now he's using correct past tense when he tells me stories. yay! the big challenge now is not so many run-on sentences. he has taken the word 'and' and run with it. lol

and this is little cara. cara is a short and stocky little thing, but she's incredibly intelligent. the youngest of the group at 6, she has remained consistently one of my best students. her english is phenomenal. one year ago she would cry if her favorite pencil was stuck underneath the table; now she holds her own quite well with the older, bigger kids in the class. as an only child, she has received a lot of attention from her mother, who is so kind and caring. apparently, her mom is very well known in suji as having a genius child, and many mothers in the town have come to ERC because cara is enrolled here.

phew.. busy!

i have only a few minutes, but i wanted to resurface and let everyone know i'm doing alright. the move this past weekend went very smoothly. my new apartment was really dirty, but with lots of comet and scrubbing, it is shaping up nicely. when things are a little more settled, i will try and post some pictures. thanks to everyone for your concern and prayers.

i have been busy writing, giving, and grading tests. i must confess there are times when i have to remind myself that i can lead a horse to water, but i can't make it drink. in the same way, i can write up study questions, have class discussions, give chapter quizzes, and offer to answer any questions throughout the book and when they're taking the test... but when the students fail, it is NOT MY FAULT. that's hard for me to remember sometimes when i desire so much for my children to succeed.

every week stefanie, brittany and i are going through stomping out the darkness, but neil t. anderson and dave park... last night was our first study. pray that God's Spirit illuminates hearts and teaches us about Himself and ourselves in Him. we are striving for genuine progress and growth in our walks with Him.

in this time of discipline, i am hungry for Him and His Word.

the Scriptures the Lord has given me this week:

Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in Him; and He shall bring it to pass. - Psalm 37,5

Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. - 1 Thessalonians 5, 16-18

For who has despised the day of small things? - Zechariah 4,10a

A man's heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps. - Proverbs 16,9

All your children (ahem, students) shall be taught by the LORD. And great shall be the peace of your children. In righteousness you shall be established. - Isaiah 54,13-14a

haha... so children are quiet, are they?! that's funny.

here's a journal i had to revise.

sometimes i feel like my life has been spent editing and revising. i should get paid big bucks to revise people's stuff. hmmmmm, now that's a thought.

another week in the life...

tomorrow is Korea's independence day, so there will be no school. in my classes today there was definitely a festive air, as if - on the first day of the week - it was a friday. how nice.

the little ones are learning plural endings (-s, -es, -ies, as well as those frustrating exceptions) and this/these. i also taught them my all-time favorite song "deep and wide". i am realizing that the first time i teach my students a song, they are rarely enthusiastic. sometimes they are just downright obstinate and refuse to sing or do anything. only later when we sing it again do they get all excited. SO STRANGE! hannah and anthony were driving me nuts because they just sat in their seats like nincompoops, while david and jake were enthusiastically mimicking my gestures and eating up every minute of it. ~sigh~ how do i draw anthony out? and settle brett down? and encourage david not to stress out?

my prep class took a vocab quiz today. angela got a 95A. you have no idea what an accomplishment this is! after being in my class for over 4 months she still seems to have trouble remembering to turn in a typed journal entry every monday. this consistent memory lapse amazes... nay, utterly confounds me, but there are yet moments where i glimpse the twinkling light at the end of the distant tunnel. today held one of those moments.

my step 3 class ate up my 14 year-old-teenage-american-ditsy-girl-impersonation last week. i had every single one of them rolling with every hair flip and shake of my hips and "like" ... oh friends, it was a classic moment in my ESL teaching career. it was amidst our discussion for listening in the "At the Mall" unit.

this class has a vocab quiz every 3 chapters, so we usually prepare beforehand with a rousing rendition of Around-the-World, where i give the english definition and two children compete to say the vocabulary word the fastest. the winner goes on to compete with the next student.. and it continues around the room. i was the MASTER in my high school german class, so i have loved transfering the passion. i am pleased to say that tonight we had rousing cheers, jason attempting to use his korean "i'm older than you by however many or few days, weeks, months or years and therefore you must listen to me" intimidation tactics (which i thoroughly enjoyed quickly nipping in the bud), intense competition, shouting and uproarous laughter. it was a riot.

in other news...

i have been busy lately. wednesday laura and andy came over for some pizza and laughs, and laura and i were pleased to introduce andy to the princess bride. i genuinely feel he will never be the same again, as everyone is who has had the privilege to be acquainted with such quality entertainment. then laura spent the night.

on saturday emily introduced me to a very well-known spicy chicken joint in gangnam (dowtown seoul). i am assuming it's famous, because when i told my students the name, they nodded enthusiastically and got really animated. it's good enough to go again... and again... ^^

stefanie has been sweltering at her apartment since her AC randomly decided to start blowing air of questionable temperature, so she crashed at my place saturday night. she's been working 12 hour days with brittany back home. she's been such a trooper, but please pray for her!

sunday brought church, where i am thoroughly enjoying being a greeter at the front door, and a trip to yongsan with stefanie to visit the national museum of korea. susan joined us later her at my place for a beginning to the long-winded pride and prejudice, and she ended up staying the night. we talked until probably 4,30 in the morning. (as she said... that's what happens when you get to talkers in the same room!)

Happy Birthday Mutti!

9 days.

my new little ones
sophia took my kindergarten kids, and i have started out with a new group of little ones. they are - overall - very well prepared to be in my class. their grasp of phonics is excellent, and i find them a good deal less taxing than my other group of munchkins. the only problem children seem to be anthony (not pictured... he was hiding from the camera under the table), who sometimes gets stubborn and refuses to do anything at random times, and jason, whose attention span is about 3 seconds... before he starts staring off into space or pointing the finger at anthony and saying what sounds like 'don't speaking korean!!!" in the highest pitched voice i've heard in a long time. oh dear... but no... i am enjoying the class. God give me wisdom and grace to teach them well. and i must not forget david, who is meticulous and always worried, as he carefully writes each letter. "wait a minute, please, teacher! wait a minute!" (heaving a deep sigh) to his credit, he gets most everything right. and jake is very good. may i just say how nice it is to have a decidedly good student? one who tries his best and does well and is conscientious. ahh...

bryant, jake, hannah

david, bryant, jake

hannah, jake??, brett, jason

the ubiquitous peace sign

caleb update: he has been moved to a lower level (level 3 in gina's class)... and while his speaking and listening comprehension is good, he still doesn't know basic grammar concepts or how to write well. i am not despairing, though. i love that boy and desire for him to succeed. pray he will try hard to focus so he doesn't have to move down to the most basic level and start from the very beginning all over again.

this past weekend

laura and i went into seoul - first to a little coffee shop called seoul selection, where used books are sold, and foreigners can see korean movies with english subtitles, etc. it was a nice little place. afterwards we wandered around itaewon (the foreigners area in seoul) looking for a bookstore called 'What the Book?" ... we asked people where it was, and always we got the double-take. laura realized she had to take special care how she annunciated her words, so people didn't think they were being cursed at. it was really quite hilarious.

and after that we went to hapgejeong to the foreigners cemetery, which was really fascinating. i loved seeing the gravestones of missionaries from america, canada, germany, denmark... people who gave their lives to korea for the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

and while i do not (at least not long-term) feel the calling of God to korea, i am eagerly awaiting the Lord's clear direction for where He is calling me in particular to serve Him. what joy there will be in going to that country and learning their language and giving my life for them... that they might know and experience the love and power of Jesus Christ.