Be spontaneous!

The kids in the neighborhood are out on winter break for 4 weeks so the streets have become one big playground. Kids are out til dusk playing games, hanging out, singing, dancing etc. It reminds me of the neighborhoods when I was little. The only thing that would interrupt our play time were cars that passed by. We all moved to the side and then resumed right where we left off.  I have learned to play a game called “Tennis”. I have noticed that only girls play it. Two people bounce a tennis ball back and forth trying to hit the person in the middle. My favorite part though is that if you drop it or the ball goes past you, it is literally a free for all. Everyone standing around you runs and fights for the ball. If you are the person to get the ball it’s your turn.  This creates lots of laughter and shouting (in a fun way). Oh, and I’m learning names. As you can imagine this is not an easy task. Not counting Luc’s family I think I remember 6. I’m trying to add 2 each day.

We attended church at the children’s home this Sunday. Thomas, my fellow teammate, preached and did a great job.  We also caught the end of a choir competition. Most of the groups were just kids of all ages singing together, but there were two legit choirs. They were really good. In two weeks I’m going to preach on Sunday. I’m going to use the bible story about Joseph to talk about when we are called by God or have dreams we want to achieve, though people may intend to stop us or try to keep us down God will use it for good.  Or something like that…

We were invited to a surprise birthday party and you can’t go to a party in Africa and not dance. There was a congo line at one point and the older ladies took us by the hands to dance in the middle. Oupa, our team leader, warned us that it would be spontaneous and sure enough it was! I was asked to make a speech; a word of encouragement or blessing to the woman whose birthday it was. Uhm. Sure?  I was just one of probably 10 people that got up to share something. There is an MC and a program of which I was just added into on the spot. I had a lot of fun though and it was another great culture experience.  

Straight line or station?

I'm recovering from being out of commission for most of the week due to illness. I didn't leave bed for 3 days so I'm some relieved to feeling better. Imodium and rehydrating salts became my best friend :)
I made it into town by taxi. I passed some neighborhood kids on my way to the main road and two of the girls wanted to walk with me. I think by now they recognize me J In order get the taxi to stop for you, you just point your finger in in the air which mean you are going to town I guess.  Now, when I say taxi it’s really like the equivalent of a 15 passenger van. I’m pretty sure they just drive around the township picking people up until they are full and then drive into town. He literally honked at every person we passed or saw. I’m going to have to get used to so much honking.  It’s very different then the states where you just get in and head straight to where you are going. Maybe this is why we run on cp time (the original) here. No one’s in a hurry.


For the local taxi's you use hand signals to tell the driver which way you want to go. You make a circular motion with your fist if you want to go to the station/ plaza for shopping or anything in that direction. Coming home you make a gesture of straight line and tell them your stop. It works quite easily actually.You just get in with the rest of the people going that direction. My accent has proved to be a little bit of barrier when telling the driver where I want to get down. The other day it took a couple people in the taxi with me to figure it out what i was saying but I got there just fine. 

"How do we grow taller?"

This weekend the basketball team that Luc coaches had a chance to go to its first tournament. It was actually  their first time leaving the township to play basketball and their first competition. We all went along to support the team since we had been going to some of their practices. They are all high school age and unfortunately they were playing against college and men's team so it was a bit uneven. However, despite losing by 90 points in both games their attitude was great, they had a good time and enjoyed the experience. Afterwards they wanted to know how to grow taller and hopefully they gained some motivation to work hard in practice.

                                    

    

Friday is the kids club that Petunia organizes for the kids in the neighborhood. They first bake followed by games, songs and bible study. I'm hoping to find a way to connect with the young girls maybe another time during the week. They have their winter break coming up so pray I can find a creative way to minister to them. 

Finally for lunch this week we had a South African burger in the township. It includes an average size burger on two huge thick pieces of bread and then a huge mound of fries. Quite the experience.We can cross this culture experience off the list.  

feeling the love

My family recently lost my grandpa who was such a beautiful and loving husband, dad, grandfather and great grandfather. As you can imagine its difficult for me to be so far away but its given me an opportunity to turn to my community for encouragement and prayer. People truly are wonderful if you allow them to speak into your life and be there for you, but that's the catch you have to allow them. You have to open up and say here are my weaknesses, my needs and my shortcomings. You must invite people into the depths of your life because its meant to be shared. It took the hardest seasons of life to realize this for myself and I was stubborn at first until I could accept the gift that those around me offered. Now, I will never be the same.

Lord thank you for all the friends and family that are models of your faithfulness, compassion and unconditional love. You have allowed them to help me see you. Always in your debt. Amen.

A Funeral (South African Style)

On Tuesday our schedule for the day was changed due to a funeral at the neighbors house. You can learn so much about cultures through their ceremonies (weddings, funerals) and rites of passage (birthdays etc). First its a very communal event whether you know the person or not and its last a loooong time. From the day that the person dies until the day of the funeral there is an evening prayer/memorial service every night at the home. The night before the funeral the evening service is 4 hours long. We heard them singing long into the night. We didn't have to attend that one, but we did go to one of the evening services. Lots of singing and praying. It was not in English so to be honest I feel asleep after the singing. oops...  The family cooks for the entire neighborhood that attends the funeral so everyone shares their pots, pans, dishes, etc. The women spend two days cooking. There was easily over a 100 people that came. That is so hard core something we in the states would never consider doing.

The coffin is brought to the home and placed in the father's room if its his child. I was wondering how in the world they would get a coffin through the doorway, but its much smaller than our ornate huge ones. Then 30 minutes before the funeral starts they open the coffin for a viewing. When its time to start which in this case was 7am the coffin is moved outside under a tent that has been set up in the yard with chairs for people to sit in. The only thing really different about this part is that about half of the people came late and it was outside at 7am in the cold. Brrr.. After about an 1 1/2 it was time to go to the cemetery. It is not that common to see a processional of cars in the states but here everyone does it. How do over a 100 people get there you ask?Well some people drive, but most take a bus. Yep, they rent a bus to take ALL the people to the cemetery. At the cemetery they sing and bury the coffin but not 6 ft down just below ground level because next the men use shovels to cover the coffin and make a mound above ground. This took a little while but we waited til its done. The fact that the men of the community actually bury the coffin themselves is fascinating to me. Something about it seems more personal or meaningful. After this part we went back to the neighbor's home and had lunch. All together it was almost a 4 hour affair but well worth it.

In the beginning

Its been three days since arriving here in South Africa. We have had time to soak it in, adjust to the time difference and learn about the community. Our first day here in order to fight jet lag Danielle and I went to help Petunia, the team leader along with her husband Luc, with her weekly kids club. They bake together,  play games and then end with bible songs. There must have been 40 kids from the neighborhood that came over to join. The kids just stared at us for the first 30 minutes or so, but once the games started we were pulled in quickly to participate laughing and playing with them. The kids speak English here so the bold ones came to talk to us. The second day here we were given a history of the Innerchange team and the township. Listening to the story I found it amazing how God provided the relationships and connections to be invited in, placing the team right where He wanted. The history of the township was also interesting as we learned about its foundation, the role of the government in developing it,and the remnants of the apartheid. This also helped me to understand how the history of this township has affected/or created the culture of this area. I'm totally a geek when it comes to cultures. I find it so fascinating.Today we went to church where Luc was preaching and I was blessed by his message about obeying the word of God. After church a few people wanted to take a picture with us because they were so excited to meet someone from the states :)

Luc and Petunia have been wonderful hosts as we stay in the guest room of their house. They are the team leaders here in South Africa. They have 3 children that have been a pleasure getting to know. Their son is 8 months and they have two daughters 5 and 14.Its a blessing to be with them and be welcomed in so graciously.Our orientation of the township and the ministries we will be participating in continues through this week. I have learned to greet people in Zutu which is fun, but language learning is such a humble experience. As we serve and minister I'm hoping to learn as much as the language as possible.

Prayer requests:
- continued team building as we continue to get to know each other
- sharp and curious minds as we learn the language and the culture in order to honor those we meet.
- the resolve to be obedient to the Word of God.
- health and strength for my body because it is not used to all this new bacteria

                                                                  Church Building

                                                                     Our room

                                                         Jumping pic kids from church

                                                                One of Luc's daughter and his son

The Countdown

My summer adventure to South Africa is finally getting close enough that I have begun counting the days. I made the two day road trip home with a car packed with what was left over from 5 years in Los Angeles. All the cliches describe it, " a new season", "a new chapter","the turning of a new page". As much as the unknown causes anxiety it has also resulted in the joy of anticipation. What's next? A summer internship in South Africa. After that? I have no idea. In a way its comforting because I know I can focus on the moment and the new experiences that are ahead of me without being too concerned about the next step before the first one has even happened. I had this same feeling before I left for India not having any idea what I was going to do when I returned. I believed then and believe now that this experience will have an impact on future decisions. First things, first.

I heard from my internship coordinator who began to paint the picture of what my summer will look like. As a resident of the township I am humbled to have a chance to learn from his experiences and his own journey of faith. His heart to stay and serve in the neighborhood that he grew up in despite the challenges of poverty is truly inspirational. It will be a blessing to be mentored and discipled by the team leaders who are also African. Along with youth ministry we will have time for fun things too including going on a Safari. This is on my bucket list which is so exciting! I'm just as excited as I am nervous.

In my devotions the Lord has spoken to me the words and scriptures related to "preparing the way". It is an antecedent statement that occurs in the prophets as they declare to Israel the hope and coming of the Messiah. They must have spoke with such conviction and vision. The Lord has been prompting me to prepare the way in my own life through worship, prayer and most of all hope for such an encounter with the Living God. I pray I have daily encounters with the presence of God that reminds me more is on the way.

fear or faith?

i think that fear is a feeling and faith is an action. its like the difference between expectation and acceptance. i can have all kinds of expectations, but when they are not met i can easily turn to fear. fear that i did something wrong, fear that i missed something, and fear that it wasn't supposed to be like this. some people might say that we shouldn't have expectations because we could be let down, but i say have expectations and when they are not met practice faith.

just for today

this journey has kept me holding on moment by moment and breath by breath. i have discovered the gift of a new day and another chance. we can't really live more than a day at a time. the sun will eventually shine and the clouds are never far off. we are caught in the rythm of life. it is a tiring and hopeless fight to change what we are powerless over. i want to call a trial, a trial and a celebration, a celebration. i want to live passionately holding onto what is immovable, unshakeable and unchanging.

a second glance

If I found what I found in india because of india then I could believe that its only in india. I could worship india. I could compare it to everything else. If I found what I found because of something great inside of me, then I may believe that I will always be great. If I found god because I found poverty I could worship the poor. But if I found God, then found passion, then found life, then found calling, I have something to follow. I have something that could take me anywhere, that could make me doing anything. If I want it to be like it was in india then I'm living in the past. To live in the present means I only have to find one thing, not many things and all i have to do is live from my heart.

we don't chant or hold hands...

We are here because there is no refuge, finally from ourselves. Until we confront ourselves in the eyes and hearts of others, we are running. Until we suffer others to share our secrets, we have no safety from them. Afraid to be known, we can know neither ourselves, nor any other, we will be aloone. Where else but in our common ground, can we find such a mirror? Here, together, we can last appear clearly to ourselves not as the giant of our dreams, nor the dwarf of our fears, but as a person, part of a whole, with our share in its purpose. In this ground, we can take root and grow, not alone anymore as in death, but alive to ourselves and to others.

what to do but

go aste aste
day by day
walk by faith
take the narrow road
walk away from the closed door
walk through the open one
wait at the cross
anticipate the empty grave
believe in the end,
we can say, it was God and his glory.

on time

For everything there is a time
nothing is all the time
neither joy nor sorrow
when it's time to grieve, grieve
when it's time to rejoice, rejoice
ready or not time passes
it spends itself
time is
an enemy to dreams
a window to the divine
the expectation of the hopeful
when it's time, give
when its time, give up
when it's time,
it's time to live.

new things/korean style

Something about this year smells new. i try to make a resolve at the beginning of each year to try something new. i feel like this year, more than others, i'm a little more open. these may seem small but...

i drove during rush hour to downtown LA, twice
i tried two new restaurants (both korean)
i ate twice in korea town
i went to a korean mall/grocery
i have generously added rice, seaweed and spinach to my diet

noticing a theme?
i was at a korean restaurant with my friends and i told them i was the most "white" person at the table, but then my roomie pointed out, i was also the most korean. go figure.

mugol (eat more!)

food was a BIG part of our trip. The older people take care of the younger people by telling them to eat more. They put food on your plate as soon as its empty, before you can even ask or refuse. i learned to eat slower and always leave a little on my plate. The other thing you can count on is that there will be multiple rounds of eating. The nature of my trip only added to such truth because every time i met someone new they had always prepared such a feast! we ate great food and we ate often. the meat there is so tasty and we ate a lot of seafood too. at times the seafood was a bit of a stretch, but you have to try everything. the fruit in korea was awesome. it was apple, orange and pear season. they were all so juicy and fresh. we ate fruit after every meal. if we went out to dinner than we ate it when we got home. one time my sister put a plate full of apples in front of antonia and i. we were eating, watching tv, enjoying the yumminess. next thing you know the rest of my family gathers around. i look at the plate. there were only 4 or 5 slices left! whoops, i guess those apples were for everyone. i couldn't believe we ate almost the whole plate. they make it so easy with these cute mini forks they bring out especially for dessert. i have already been craving meat and as for the fruit i found some korean pears at costco, but i haven't tried them yet. i don't want them to ruin how i remember such amazing fruit and i think next week i'm hitting korea town for some bbq.

Patient Bear

A new year equals a new motto, a new slogan, or something to remind me what life's really about. Well this year its kinda a punch in the gut, yep you feel it. It's to wait. I know, not exciting or is it?

As part of my Christian faith I believe that God has a will that he desires for all of us and I believe God often imparts or reveals it to those who ask him. How do you know its God's will? Well, first you have to know God. Ever said, "that is totally so and so...?" It's because you know them, you know who they are and sometimes why they do the things they do. Same with God, as you get to know Him, you start to get to know who He is, and why He does some of the things He does. All this to say, part of the journey of faith for me is being able to trust His will, when i don't like it, i don't understand it or i don't want it. This remains a struggle at all times.

The second thing about my faith is that I also believe in God's timing. I think that sometimes we get it right, but at the wrong time. For whatever reason, this is the harder of the two for me. I think its because that means sometimes while I might know, I still have to wait. Who wants to do that? We aren't taught or rewarded for waiting. Why do you think we have sayings like, "early bird, gets the worm," or "you snooze, you lose." We are a "get it done and get it done now before its too late", kind of society. This is both a positive and negative thing about us, but the overall message is that waiting is not rewarded.

This brings me to my korea trip. One of the many times we were "road trippin" in the mini van I asked my sister's friend what the korean belief about creation was. I gave the example that Christians generally cite Adam and Eve. She told me that there was a heavenly prince that wanted to rule earth and there were two animals that wanted to be turned into humans; a bear and a tiger. The Heavenly King set a test before the tiger and the bear, to see who would be turned into a human. Both animals were sent into the forest and they had to wait there, only eating the food the Heavenly King gave them. The one who could wait the longest in the forest, only eating the ration of the King's food, would win. The tiger was the first to go and flee the forest to eat. Therefore the bear becomes a woman and marries the prince. Their child becomes the first king of Korea. Ok, whats the moral of the story? To the koreans the hero is the patient bear because in the end he is the one rewarded.

This struck me as quite unique and as i think about it more, it makes my 2010 a little more exciting. What if our society valued waiting? Like "wait as long as possible to get married because it will be a great reward." (this is not a belief koreans hold to. believe me, everyone knew someone they could set me up with because, yes i'm still single.) However, I think that waiting is something that not just the Koreans value, but God values.

Finally, to bring all these tangents together. The korean view of waiting is more comforting to me when i feel the pressure of my own society to get certain things done and get them done now. I inherently think waiting is hard and waiting too long is just wrong, because i'll miss something if i wait. However, God has been helping me to see that this isn't always the case and that what you do while you wait may be more important than how long you wait. So yes, someone who dreams so many things for myself and others is having a hard time with 2010's motto, but i will wait; and while i wait I will worship. I will worship a God who doesn't allow short cuts when its a matter of becoming who we are supposed to be. I will worship a God who knows all the desires of our hearts and whose timing is not our timing. And hopefully, I will worship when i'm tired of waiting and i want to be the tiger not the bear.

"Trust in Him at all times..." Psalm 62:8

unee(s) (older sister)

This is my sister Min Young, she is the 2nd oldest. She is the sister who first contacted me. She wrote the very first letter I receieved and is the one who I exchanged emails with for almost 2 years. Her and her husband both speak a little english which helped a lot during my trip. She is a special education teacher and I can tell she is great at it because of her warmth, joy and outgoing personality. She lives in Bucheon which is in between Seoul and Incheon. We stayed at her home most of the time, or at least the time we weren't traveling. My birth family was poor so Min Young was the one chosen, by her parents, to be sent to college. She is the only one of my three older sisters that went to college. She talked about the pressure that she felt to do well and take care of her family. She met her husband in college and they have traveled to Australia and New Zealand. They have two beautiful daughters that are ages 4 and 5. Her husband was also a lot of fun. A big ham in front of the camera.

This is my oldest sister, Chum-Yi. She has a boy who is 8 and a girl who is 7. She lives in Yeosu, their hometown. We stayed at her house over New Years. She is quiet and more resevered, but her strength comes from the Lord. When we were talking about our faith, she shared that her life was very difficult after her mom passed away and my two other sisters moved away. She said that it was through these difficult times that her christian faith became sincere. When I asked her what her favorite place in Yeosu was, she answered the Dolsan Bridge. My sisters grew up in a teeny house just under the bridge. She said they used to walk back and forth across the bridge to clear their minds or talk about life. Being the oldest child and the one to stay in Yeosu I wonder what her responsibilities were. She met her husband on a blind date. He was so sweet and sincerely emotional. He was sentimental and so caring. He sang to Antonia a korean song one night. He also is a big Beatles fan. He wanted us to sing "Let it be" all together. He really tried to communicate with us and was so friendly. He kept saying "we are one family."Oh, my favorite thing about him was that at the end of their wedding, he was carrying my sister down the aisle and he tripped, dropping her and face planting himself. ha. we saw the video.

My 3rd sister is Ji Young. My brother in law called us the "twin towers" because we look so similar. She is such a tropper because she is 6 months pregnant and still did everything. She was fun loving and sweet. We have the same laugh and my brother in law teased us plenty about that. Her daughter is 3 and a boy is due in March. Her and her husband also met on a blind date. I've been thinking maybe I should try my luck. She lives about two hours south of my middle sister. It seems as though the two families are close and they have children about the same age. In Korea, the first birthday is a really big celebration. I told her I would try to make it for her son's first birthday next year.

a proud emo (aunt)

i include this last one because my nieces are adorable, but also princesses. i bought them coloring books, dora, blues clues and barbie. the youngest one started screaming and balling when she got blues clues. why? because it was blue and not pink! haha! i felt so bad. luckily her older sister is a bit more easy going and was willing to switch. note to self, always bring pink.

ah-bo-gi (father)

When we first met he cried and as i tried to bow, he tried to hug, but either way it was a loving embrace. Quick recap: He only found out about me a year ago, because my mother gave me up for adoption without tell him. It is only after my sister and I had been emailing that my sister told him. He was really really happy. There was slight confusion however, when my father stepped out of the room and my sister asked me what my blood type was. Well, my blood type is B. The room erupted... "BBBBB????". Yes, i answered unsure what had caused the reaction. My friend who was translasting said, "it must be wrong." I asked why and she explained that my mother's blood type was A and my father's was O. Oh no?!?! is what i thought. Jokingly, i stuck out my arm and said we bettter figure this out. The room filled with endless korean as I thought how funny it would be to say "Hi father, you aren't my father." *gulp* Fortunately soon after my father came back into the room, they asked him is blood type. My family reacted with shock when my father said AB. I reacted with a sigh of relief. Glad we got that cleared up, that would not be awkward at all.

At the restaurant we went to for dinner after we met, my father was so happy he was pouring me Soju, a korean liquor, that I think is tasty. I probably had two shots and he had the rest of the bottle. This was the first night that we learned Koreans don't stop eating. When we had returned to my sisters house, we ate once again and this time, my Father who was still so happy, said we should celebrate. He brought out of the liquor cabinet a 30 yr old Scotch whiskey, poured me a shot glass and offered a toast. Now that, i had to chase with apples. We then exchanged gifts. My father gave me a pearl necklace that i'm wearing in the picture. It is so beautiful.

As any father would, he asked me about school and money. Wanting to now how my desire to be a missionary was going to provide me with enough money. My attempts to try and share with him, i don't need a lot of money, didn't seem to put him at ease, but he was happy to know that my family has enough money that i don't have to worry. Either way though, we gave me a incredibly generous sum of money on the day I left. He was caring, funny, outgoing and wanted to help in anyway he could.

ps. he kept calling me "charlie" instead of "karli" lol.

in case you think i'm making it up.... :)

Yep we are all family! (my mother's side)

All sisters, 2 brothers in law, 2 nieces, 1 nephew

2 sisters, 3 nieces, 1 brother in law, father and stepmom. toni and i.