The song is:
Today is ________.
Today is ________.
All day long, all day long.
Yesterday was ________.
Tomorrow will be _______.
Oh what fun!
Oh what fun!
I have six tables in my classroom (each table is a color of the rainbow...of course!), so each table sings a line and then we sing the last line together...well it's more like shouting it together. They also think it is the funnest thing in the world to sing 10 Little Indians really quietly and then shout "10 Little Indian Boys." I actually get a kick out of it too!^^ It's fun seeing the kids so excited.
After school, I walked to Bean Club down the road about 15 minutes. I met Julie, my Korean friend who is tutoring me, and her friend who just lived in Italy for two months.
(This is a pic of Julie.)
Korea coffee houses have some AMAZING coffee!!
It was a mix between tutoring and just talking. I am slowly learning more and more phrases that I can use in everyday conversation. We actually had a really good conversation. Julie's friend doesn't speak English at all, so Julie acted as a translator. Sometimes, I just had no idea what they were saying but that's okay. Julie's friend (I can't remember her name) mentioned that many people she spoke to in Europe didn't know where Korea is. That makes me sad! Julie was shocked and asked me if Korea is a famous place or not. I told her that we learn about the Korean War in American history so most people should at least know where Korea is, but sadly, I think many people don't know much about Korea. I know I didn't before coming here.
When I told people that I received a Fulbright scholarship to teach in Korea, the most common question was: "South Korea, right?" At least they know that there are two Koreas, but seriously...! When I tell Koreans this, they just laugh out of surprise. I explained to Julie and her friend that my thinking is a little different than many Americans. There are many people who are naturally open minded, but I believe that Americans who have traveled outside of the country tend to be more open mind than those who have not traveled outside of the country. I explained that I love the United States, but I do not agree with everything that happens in our country. I do not agree with most of our current politics, I do not agree with the fact that many people act like the US is the center of the world, and I do not like that every country that I have been to knows more about the US than we know of their country.
If you know anything about my ideas of the world and my concepts of US politics, you may understand why our conversation ended up upsetting me. It is nothing that they said, it is simply my beliefs about where our country should be and my understanding of where our country is currently that upset me.
We also talked about globalization. There are certain aspects of globalization that have been very helpful for the world, but I feel like many countries are losing part of their cultural identities because of it. When I come to another country, I could care less about finding a Subway or a Starbucks; I would much rather find something that represents the country. Because many people in many countries have deemed the west, specifically the United States, as the pinnacle of everything that is wonderful in the world, they have chosen to "westernize." A few examples:
*Korean woman think it is incredibly important to have a double eyelid, and many have decided to have plastic surgery to create that extra lid.
*Eye-widening surgery. I think it is pretty obvious what the point of that surgery is...
*Starbucks on every corner in Japan and Korea. I can stand on the corner of one street in Japan and see three Starbucks on the three other corners facing me!
*Sitting with children in a Kenyan orphanage who have decided that God hates them because He didn't make them white. "God made you when his eyes were open; God made us when He was almost asleep."
There is so much that I still need to learn about the world, and my sincere hope is that I never forget that. I want to change so many things, but I am left to slowly try to improve one thing at a time. If explaining to Korean women that their eyes are beautiful will stop them from altering their bodies to incorporate a Western concept, I will do it. I will walk 15 feet past the nearest Starbucks just to go to a traditional Korean tea house. I will continue to tell children, in whatever country I visit, that they are beautiful despite their skin color. I am often sad when I think about these types of concepts, but I am grateful to have people in my life that have challenged my thinking and have helped me further discover what I truly believe and want for myself and others.
Anyway, the three of us had an interesting conversation. It ended up turning into a love discussion.^^ Julie's friend compared love to honey on the end of a knife. She said that the knife is very sharp, but to get the honey, you must touch the knife. Hence, love is dangerous, but in order to get what you desire, you must chance being hurt. I thought it was a good analogy, and I'm glad they could explain it to me.
I headed home for dinner after a while. Julie helped me figure out the bus!!^^ FINALLY!! I have been in Wonju for almost two months, and I had no idea how to use the bus. I still am not a pro, but I think I can figure a few things out from it. When I was almost home, my host mom called me to ask me where I was. Apparently, she was at her husband's pharmacy which is very near Bean Club. Ah...funny coincidences. I learned how to take a bus though, so it was no big deal.
I had fish cutlet for dinner, because my host father and mother brought food home. It was nice to finally sit down with them!! It seems like it has been so long! We were able to catch up, and I asked my host mom again about me volunteering at an orphanage. I think it will happen soon. I felt bad asking so many times, but I would really like to start. She and my co-teacher are going to work together to figure it out. They are so great about everything!!
Oh, sadness, I found out that my only free weekend this month is the only weekend my host father is busy! ㅠㅠ Boo! He is meeting a friend in Seoul next weekend. I think I am going with my host mom and sis on Sunday, but I don't know if I'll see my host dad at all. My host dad jokingly said, "You are not my family." He quickly told me that he was joking, and I know he was joking. It was still a little sad, because I know that I haven't been around much. I really want to spend time with them, but I also want to be able to travel and spend time with friends. It's a balancing act that I'm working on.
When I told people that I received a Fulbright scholarship to teach in Korea, the most common question was: "South Korea, right?" At least they know that there are two Koreas, but seriously...! When I tell Koreans this, they just laugh out of surprise. I explained to Julie and her friend that my thinking is a little different than many Americans. There are many people who are naturally open minded, but I believe that Americans who have traveled outside of the country tend to be more open mind than those who have not traveled outside of the country. I explained that I love the United States, but I do not agree with everything that happens in our country. I do not agree with most of our current politics, I do not agree with the fact that many people act like the US is the center of the world, and I do not like that every country that I have been to knows more about the US than we know of their country.
If you know anything about my ideas of the world and my concepts of US politics, you may understand why our conversation ended up upsetting me. It is nothing that they said, it is simply my beliefs about where our country should be and my understanding of where our country is currently that upset me.
We also talked about globalization. There are certain aspects of globalization that have been very helpful for the world, but I feel like many countries are losing part of their cultural identities because of it. When I come to another country, I could care less about finding a Subway or a Starbucks; I would much rather find something that represents the country. Because many people in many countries have deemed the west, specifically the United States, as the pinnacle of everything that is wonderful in the world, they have chosen to "westernize." A few examples:
*Korean woman think it is incredibly important to have a double eyelid, and many have decided to have plastic surgery to create that extra lid.
*Eye-widening surgery. I think it is pretty obvious what the point of that surgery is...
*Starbucks on every corner in Japan and Korea. I can stand on the corner of one street in Japan and see three Starbucks on the three other corners facing me!
*Sitting with children in a Kenyan orphanage who have decided that God hates them because He didn't make them white. "God made you when his eyes were open; God made us when He was almost asleep."
There is so much that I still need to learn about the world, and my sincere hope is that I never forget that. I want to change so many things, but I am left to slowly try to improve one thing at a time. If explaining to Korean women that their eyes are beautiful will stop them from altering their bodies to incorporate a Western concept, I will do it. I will walk 15 feet past the nearest Starbucks just to go to a traditional Korean tea house. I will continue to tell children, in whatever country I visit, that they are beautiful despite their skin color. I am often sad when I think about these types of concepts, but I am grateful to have people in my life that have challenged my thinking and have helped me further discover what I truly believe and want for myself and others.
Anyway, the three of us had an interesting conversation. It ended up turning into a love discussion.^^ Julie's friend compared love to honey on the end of a knife. She said that the knife is very sharp, but to get the honey, you must touch the knife. Hence, love is dangerous, but in order to get what you desire, you must chance being hurt. I thought it was a good analogy, and I'm glad they could explain it to me.
I headed home for dinner after a while. Julie helped me figure out the bus!!^^ FINALLY!! I have been in Wonju for almost two months, and I had no idea how to use the bus. I still am not a pro, but I think I can figure a few things out from it. When I was almost home, my host mom called me to ask me where I was. Apparently, she was at her husband's pharmacy which is very near Bean Club. Ah...funny coincidences. I learned how to take a bus though, so it was no big deal.
I had fish cutlet for dinner, because my host father and mother brought food home. It was nice to finally sit down with them!! It seems like it has been so long! We were able to catch up, and I asked my host mom again about me volunteering at an orphanage. I think it will happen soon. I felt bad asking so many times, but I would really like to start. She and my co-teacher are going to work together to figure it out. They are so great about everything!!
Oh, sadness, I found out that my only free weekend this month is the only weekend my host father is busy! ㅠㅠ Boo! He is meeting a friend in Seoul next weekend. I think I am going with my host mom and sis on Sunday, but I don't know if I'll see my host dad at all. My host dad jokingly said, "You are not my family." He quickly told me that he was joking, and I know he was joking. It was still a little sad, because I know that I haven't been around much. I really want to spend time with them, but I also want to be able to travel and spend time with friends. It's a balancing act that I'm working on.
1 comment:
That is an awesome analogy about love. And I hate that they feel they need to americanize. Sucky :(
I noticed you mentioned the song that you use. The daycare uses songs too. We have one for the days of the week to the tune of Oh, my darling clemintine...Sunday Monday (pause) Tuesday Wednesday (pause) Thursday Friday Saturday. And there's a teacher that does the days of the week to the tune of the Addams Family. She snaps her fingers and everything. It goes, Days of the week, snap snap. Days of the week, snap snap. Days of the week, days of the week, Days of the week...then the kids do like you did...today is, yesterday was, tomorrow will be.
I'm trying to think of other songs...I know we have one for the weather too. Like, Sunny Sunny, Sunny Sunny, Sunny Sunny in the sky...to the tune of Oh, my darling clemintine. I don't know these songs well because I work with the younger children rather than the bigger ones. The young kids focus on colors and shapes and ABCs.
Anyway, again hope that's helpful.
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