About three weekends ago I went to the city of Cheongju, which is about an hour away from Eumseong. I went with a group of coworkers to see Iron Man 3. After the movie while everyone else went back home, my roommate and I decided to stay in the city to explore the night life and then stay at a jjimjilbang (Korean sauna) for the night. It was a sleepless night of wanderings and misadventures. The next day I realized that I had left my US driver's license at a club.
Yesterday, the 18th of May, I went back to Cheongju with two things in mind: to pick up my roommate's iron that he had dropped off at the Home Plus for repairs, which was ready to be picked up and to retrieve my driver's license . I'd recently gotten a smartphone and so I used the navigation function on it to get me to where I needed to be.
Task one was a breeze. I quickly found parking, went in, showed the receipt that was given me by my roommate, took the iron, got in my car, punched in the next destination on my GPS, and embarked for the RPM Lounge Club, where my driver's license was being held. Being unfamiliar with the roads, it was nice to have the GPS as a guide. But I missed a turn because it was a slight exit right before a bridge. I thought it would be no problem as I had my GPS. But no matter how nice technology can be, sometimes human intuition is better. With this in mind I ignored the navigation's suggestion to make a circuitous left turn and instead turned right once I passed the bridge. This time, I was wrong. I was at an intersection in a two-lane highway and when the light turned green I made the attempt to make the right turn. Hidden from sight was a parallel lane adjacent to the one I was turning from and as I turned into it a taxi was coming at me. Luckily I saw it coming and braced myself for it like I would a hit from a linebacker.
I didn't see my life flash before my eyes. I wasn't angry, sad, scared, or anything. I think in my head I might have said, "crap." The taxi ran right into the left front wheel and it was no insignificant hit. Considering how old the car is, I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if it were totaled.
I got out of the car to check on the passengers in the other car. Three women were in shock but seemed to be fine otherwise. The taxi driver would yell at me a bit. Literally within seconds, a tow truck was there. It and another were actually parked at that particular intersection, waiting like vultures. Apparently, this intersection is very accident-prone. As a foreigner I didn't know what to do. Yes, I had an international driver's permit but I was not the slightest bit aware of the procedures for accidents in Korea. I'd never even been in an accident in the states but for a slight scratch I made once when I tried to park in the church parking lot when I was a novice driver. I called the police and they came some minutes later. We were in the middle of an intersection and there were a couple of city buses trying to get through. The tow truck driver asked me if he should tow the car away. I assumed he meant to pull it to the side so that traffic could resume but he ended up taking it all of 800 meters to the police station.
I rode in the police car. On the ride over I called one of the staff at the school whose job it is to help us foreign teachers. He happened to be in Cheongju at that very moment and would meet me at the police station. In the car the cops asked me where I was from and whether I had insurance or not. They asked me if I had my passport and driver's license. He was talking about the international driver's license but for some reason when he asked me, I mistakenly thought that he was asking for my US driver's license. As it was exactly what I was on my way to get, I asked them if we could stop at my intended destination to pick it up on the way to the police station. My GPS was still on and as I looked at the map we were just passing the RPM Lounge on the left. The cop said that we would have to go to the police station first. Seconds later, in an almost cartoonish twist of fate, we pulled into the police station right across the street from the RPM Lounge. I couldn't help but notice the irony in that I got in an accident while I was on my way to get that very document which allegedly proves my qualification to drive.
The other teacher came and we sorted things out. This was all a scene in and of itself. He was angry with the tow trucker for the bill of 133,000 Won that he had left me to pay for towing the car a mere 800 meters. I consoled him, telling him that tow truckers are hated in America too. Before parting ways, the taxi driver and I exchanged information. He, however, didn't have a cell phone so he asked the police officer to call my phone to ensure that I gave him the correct number to which the officer replied, "Get a phone! How do you drive a taxi without a cellphone?" The taxi driver gave an embarrassed grin.
I took out some valuables from the car glove compartment and took the iron under my arm. I got into the other tow truck, which took us an hour away to Eumseong. And for that he charged only 70,000 Won. So I was down 203,000 Won from a stupid and costly mistake. But at least I accomplished what I set out to do.
I'm fine, by the way.
Sunday, May 19, 2013
Monday, May 13, 2013
Updates
Welcome to my latest blog. This will serve mainly for people to keep in touch with me and to stay up to date on what I'm doing. I've been in Korea now for a couple months and I'm slowly settling in. I came here to teach ESL at Global Vision Christian School (GVCS). The way I see it, I'm in an awesome situation because I gain teaching experience. And I'm also teaching at a Christian school so I can spit scripture at the students and nothing punitive will happen to me. I teach that lovely age group known as middle schoolers and it's not easy. My patience is being tested but this is a critical time for me because I can get confirmation on whether this is something I want to pursue as a career or not. I certainly love the idea of molding young minds and being a positive influence on them. This time is especially critical because I recently got accepted into the TESOL program for graduate school at the University of Delaware and I suspect that this experience will heavily sway my decision about grad school.
My living situation is great. The school provides an apartment. My roommate and I live in a 3-bedroom apartment. I effectively have my own bathroom until someone else decides to move in. They even provided us with a car that we share between 5 people. The only things we pay for are utilities and fuel for the car. Food in Korea is dirt cheap. Most meals are about $5 and if you really want to penny-pinch, you can get away with spending less than $2 for meals. Lunches are provided for at the school.
I'm only a couple hours away from Seoul, which I visit almost every weekend to hang out with friends, meet family, and attend church. Speaking of church, the church here, New Philadelphia, is simply amazing. I've never seen a church like this. Truly the spirit of God is working. A large part of what I expect I will be writing about will be the many miraculous signs and testimonies that will arise in the coming weeks and months. Every week there are new stories of healings, salvations, prophecies, and divine appointments. Already in the weeks I've been here, I've witnessed the spirit of God move powerfully in this church.
For those that do not believe in the power of God, do not be so quick to dismiss it. God is certainly real and we witness His power regularly. I've mentioned prophecies. Some may not believe in them, but this is a regular occurrence at this church. I've witnessed this myself. A few weeks ago after service, one of the members, Brady, came up to me seemingly randomly. We started a conversation and it was the usual greeting and introduction. He then asked me what my favorite books were. "And don't say 'the Bible'" he added. I answered as I always do to such a question: "The Count of Monte Cristo and The Brothers Karamazov." Then, as if he'd already known, he asked me, "do you write?" I replied affirmatively and told him about my writing habits. I often tell people about my daily discipline of writing. I try to write everyday, or at least account for everyday in a journal I keep on a Word document. At the end of every year I accrue about 160 pages of single-spaced journaling. I read over my year every New Years Eve and reflect on my life and where it's headed and what I've been doing. I write anything worth remembering because it's easy to forget. I write conversations, describe settings, thoughts, impressions, funny things, philosophical inquiries, inspirations, prayers, etc. Sometimes when I am reading a book I take on the writing style of that particular book's author. After relating all of this to Brady I asked him, "why do you ask?" He then said his prophetic word over me: "I saw you with a golden book, writing in it. God gave you the gift of writing." He elaborated by telling me that he saw stories in me and that many would be blessed by them. I then confessed to Brady that I have indeed written a short story some years ago. I've only let a few people read it. I never got around to finishing it but I had put it off until a later time. I've got blueprints for lots of stories waiting to be written.
Afterwards a number of us went to eat lunch at a bbq place. A couple from the US was visiting the church and we sat near them at the table. They were very encouraged at the atmosphere of the church and they opened up to us a bit. I forget their names. Though I missed her story because I was engaged in another conversation at the table, I inferred that the wife had the gift of prophecy. She is one who audibly hears the voice of God. She related one story to us that was simply amazing to hear. One time she was driving home very late at night past midnight. She heard God telling her to take a specific exit and drive to a specific destination, which turned out to be a church. God told her to go up to a specific man, gave her his name, and told her to tell him a message. Though I forget the exact details, it went something like this: "Are you Bob (let's say his name was Bob)?" He answered, "Yes." She continued, "You might think this is crazy but God told me to tell you that you should'nt leave the praise team and that you will not divorce your wife. God said that He will not allow it to happen." The man would tell her that he was indeed planning to divorce his wife and that everything she said to him was spot on. We stayed on the topic of the gift of prophecy and she told us that she was getting all sorts of "downloads" on all of us. She would say a word of prophecy over each of us sitting at the table. I asked her to tell me what revelations she had for me. She said that she'd tell me later because she didn't want to blurt anything out. Later she asked me if I had ever traveled or gone on missions. I answered affirmatively to both. She then said that when she saw me she heard "missionary!"
Perhaps one day I will become a missionary and author. I could see myself doing both. But maybe instead of keeping those words of prophecy at a distance, I should run into it and embrace it in the present. Perhaps as I simply report all the wondrous happenings in church and in my life, the truth and love of Christ will shine forth in my writing and blogging. Maybe this blog is just another outlet for my writing and my readers are my mission field.
My living situation is great. The school provides an apartment. My roommate and I live in a 3-bedroom apartment. I effectively have my own bathroom until someone else decides to move in. They even provided us with a car that we share between 5 people. The only things we pay for are utilities and fuel for the car. Food in Korea is dirt cheap. Most meals are about $5 and if you really want to penny-pinch, you can get away with spending less than $2 for meals. Lunches are provided for at the school.
I'm only a couple hours away from Seoul, which I visit almost every weekend to hang out with friends, meet family, and attend church. Speaking of church, the church here, New Philadelphia, is simply amazing. I've never seen a church like this. Truly the spirit of God is working. A large part of what I expect I will be writing about will be the many miraculous signs and testimonies that will arise in the coming weeks and months. Every week there are new stories of healings, salvations, prophecies, and divine appointments. Already in the weeks I've been here, I've witnessed the spirit of God move powerfully in this church.
For those that do not believe in the power of God, do not be so quick to dismiss it. God is certainly real and we witness His power regularly. I've mentioned prophecies. Some may not believe in them, but this is a regular occurrence at this church. I've witnessed this myself. A few weeks ago after service, one of the members, Brady, came up to me seemingly randomly. We started a conversation and it was the usual greeting and introduction. He then asked me what my favorite books were. "And don't say 'the Bible'" he added. I answered as I always do to such a question: "The Count of Monte Cristo and The Brothers Karamazov." Then, as if he'd already known, he asked me, "do you write?" I replied affirmatively and told him about my writing habits. I often tell people about my daily discipline of writing. I try to write everyday, or at least account for everyday in a journal I keep on a Word document. At the end of every year I accrue about 160 pages of single-spaced journaling. I read over my year every New Years Eve and reflect on my life and where it's headed and what I've been doing. I write anything worth remembering because it's easy to forget. I write conversations, describe settings, thoughts, impressions, funny things, philosophical inquiries, inspirations, prayers, etc. Sometimes when I am reading a book I take on the writing style of that particular book's author. After relating all of this to Brady I asked him, "why do you ask?" He then said his prophetic word over me: "I saw you with a golden book, writing in it. God gave you the gift of writing." He elaborated by telling me that he saw stories in me and that many would be blessed by them. I then confessed to Brady that I have indeed written a short story some years ago. I've only let a few people read it. I never got around to finishing it but I had put it off until a later time. I've got blueprints for lots of stories waiting to be written.
Afterwards a number of us went to eat lunch at a bbq place. A couple from the US was visiting the church and we sat near them at the table. They were very encouraged at the atmosphere of the church and they opened up to us a bit. I forget their names. Though I missed her story because I was engaged in another conversation at the table, I inferred that the wife had the gift of prophecy. She is one who audibly hears the voice of God. She related one story to us that was simply amazing to hear. One time she was driving home very late at night past midnight. She heard God telling her to take a specific exit and drive to a specific destination, which turned out to be a church. God told her to go up to a specific man, gave her his name, and told her to tell him a message. Though I forget the exact details, it went something like this: "Are you Bob (let's say his name was Bob)?" He answered, "Yes." She continued, "You might think this is crazy but God told me to tell you that you should'nt leave the praise team and that you will not divorce your wife. God said that He will not allow it to happen." The man would tell her that he was indeed planning to divorce his wife and that everything she said to him was spot on. We stayed on the topic of the gift of prophecy and she told us that she was getting all sorts of "downloads" on all of us. She would say a word of prophecy over each of us sitting at the table. I asked her to tell me what revelations she had for me. She said that she'd tell me later because she didn't want to blurt anything out. Later she asked me if I had ever traveled or gone on missions. I answered affirmatively to both. She then said that when she saw me she heard "missionary!"
Perhaps one day I will become a missionary and author. I could see myself doing both. But maybe instead of keeping those words of prophecy at a distance, I should run into it and embrace it in the present. Perhaps as I simply report all the wondrous happenings in church and in my life, the truth and love of Christ will shine forth in my writing and blogging. Maybe this blog is just another outlet for my writing and my readers are my mission field.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)