Two Rat Monday

Rock sculpture of otters.

Twice a week I am on my own for my morning walk as Fred plays basketball with the young missionaries. I take advantage of this time to just let my mind wander and enjoy the beautiful scenery along the river walk. It really is a wonderful walk. The river is controlled by a series of inflatable barriers. When they are deflated, the water flows quickly forming several small water falls along the way. When the barriers are inflated the water is much deeper and very calm. The parks along the edge are adorned with pretty trees, bushes and flowers. The river is home to fish, ducks and cranes. Signs all around the river warn of otter crossings, though we have never
seen a single otter in the four months we have been here. BUT... I have seen rats. Yes I am sure they are rats and not otters. Every couple of weeks one will dart quickly across the trail in front of me. Big fat nasty rats. I also have seen them lying dead near the trail. I am not sure which is nastier. Today I saw two rats. One running across my path just a few steps ahead of me and the other floating belly up in the river. YUK. My first thought (after I was through cringing and shuttering) was... This is a two-rat Monday, it must be a special day. So my wandering mind took off in a strange direction. Follow if you dare.

Monday was a special day. When I left my apartment that morning the gate guard spoke to me and I understood (kind of). I was able to answer him in Korean and he knew what I was saying (I think). As soon as I arrived at the park I saw my favorite Korean Harmony  (grandmother).I see her everyday that I walk by the river and she is always very friendly. Since we had been out of town, I had missed three days in a row. So when she saw me, she not only waved, but she clapped her hands and laughed. My Korean chingu (friend) was happy to see me. In fact it seemed like everyone was a little friendlier.

The scenery was breath-taking on this beautiful fall day. The sun was soft on the mountains causing them to look almost velvet. The breeze was cool and fresh on my face. Here and there an autumn leaf would drift across the pathway. I just felt happy. I also thought about the fact that I was actually walking in Korea, just like walking on our own river walk at home- feeling completely safe and comfortable in a place that wasn't even on my radar six months ago. My life just seems amazing.

So the phrase "two-rat Monday" is stuck in my mind. It means any day that is special or that you make special. Do you think it will catch on? Will people hear my grandchildren wishing them a two rat Monday? Hmmm.... probably not. But for now dear family and friends, I wish you a week filled with two rat Mondays.

Chapel Fair

We had a wonderful opportunity to participate in a chapel fair at one of our assigned camps. We are so appreciative of the chaplains that invited us and helped plan this fun event. It was a beautiful day and a perfect opportunity to connect with lots of people of varying faiths.

We planned and prepared for weeks. Our leaders in Salt Lake sent us materials we could share with those who stopped by our table. The three young sister missionaries made our very professional display boards. We received lots of compliments.

Our mission president and his wife traveled from Busan to offer support. We couldn't believe they could make time in their busy schedule. They helped served hot dogs and chips- our contribution to the picnic portion of the fair. We were the first to run out of food, despite the fact that we brought 25% more food than we were assigned. Hot dogs are very popular here... on the army post and off. The picnic also included ribs, hamburgers, bulgogi, rice and lots of other food.



The air was filled with music the whole day. Rock, blues, gospel... all kinds of musical praises to God. No Mo-tab this time. Maybe next year. We surprised one of our sister missionaries by arranging to have one of the bands sing happy birthday to her. She was so happy. It was a fun way for her to celebrate her birthday so far from home. She also found a little birthday buddy.

Many members of our branch (congregation) came to support our efforts and to fellowship with their neighbors and friends of other faiths. This was a rare opportunity to show off the wonderful, friendly, kind, just plain good people who share membership in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We had the largest representation of any group that participated in the fair, despite the fact that we are a small congregation.



At the end of the fair, the head chaplain invited everyone to participate in a prayer walk. An opportunity to express gratitude and offer our prayers for our nation, for peace or anything else in our hearts. I was just filled with gratitude.... for the good people of faith who spent the day sharing, for freedom of religion, for those who are honest in heart, for this beautiful day in this beautiful country where God has sent us to share his word.

Our religion is often challenged and criticized. We are sometimes not even recognized as Christians, though we are completely devoted to Jesus Christ. That is what made this day of sharing and fellowship all the sweeter. This event will most definitely be a highlight of our Korean Adventure.

When life gives you lotus root, make stir fry!

I have been looking for sweet potatoes since we have been here. Not the deep orange ones that are referred to as yams. I love the light fleshed sweet potatoes that have a milder flavor and firmer texture. The other day I was thrilled to find them being sold by a sidewalk vendor. We purchased four medium sized potatoes for 3,000 won, or $3.00. Not a bad price here in Korea.





As soon as I took them out of the sack I became doubtful that they really were sweet potatoes. I scrubbed the dirt off of one and became even more doubtful. So I cut the end off. If these were sweet potatoes they were the victims of some very creative worms. No! Not sweet potatoes.

I turned to my trusted Korean culture resource, "google". Did a quick search for Korean root vegetables and found out I had purchased lotus root, a popular crunchy vegetable similar to water chestnuts. They can be eaten raw or cooked. Then I googled recipes and found something I could use. So I scrubbed, pealed and sliced the lotus roots. Then I boiled them for 20 minutes. After I drained them I dropped them into hot sesame oil and cooked them another 10 minutes. Then I added a sauce made of brown sugar, soy sauce and ginger. After cooking that until the sauce was absorbed, I added them to a veggie stir fry.

It was actually very good, but I think if I ever again accidentally buy lotus root I might just try it raw!





Chuseok

The most important holiday of the year for Koreans is Chuseok. It takes place on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month during a full moon. The day prior and the day after are also celebrated as part of the Chuseok holiday. It might just be me, but that seems a little complicated. I may not be able to use that formula to calculate the date, but  I do know it occurred September 18-20th this  year. It can be compared to the American Thanksgiving. During this holiday, the Korean people visit ancestors graves, eat traditional foods, visit family members, play traditional games, and just celebrate life. Travel becomes very difficult. Public transportation is so crowded that it sometimes takes hours just to find a place in a bus, subway or train. The highways are packed with bumper to bumper slow moving traffic, often doubling the normal travel time. Families gather in their home towns. They honor their ancestors and feast in their homes. This is a wonderful time for the Korean people, but it is difficult for our young missionaries to accomplish much.

With that in mind, we organized an American style Chuseok activity for the thirty seven young missionaries in our zone. We fixed French toast for breakfast. Lots of French toast. Six loaves of bread and four dozen eggs worth of French toast. Then they played games inside and played basketball outside. They have so much fun together. It's heart warming to see how they love and care for one another. They are sometimes homesick, often struggling with a new language (for some it's English for others it's Korean), working hard and expecting little in return and all of this for a cause they believe in. All this for something and someone they love with their whole hearts. All these sacrifices are made to bring the Gospel of Jesus Christ to their brothers and sisters in Korea. So they become a family. They rely on one another. All zone gatherings are like high energy family reunions. We just love to be part of it.



 

After an action packed couple of hours, we gathered them in the chapel for some spiritual feasting. We spent about forty-five minutes reading scriptures about gratitude and sharing our personal thoughts and feelings on that topic. I was deeply touched by their comments and demonstrated understanding of the blessings gratitude brings. At the end we issued a challenge to them. For the ten weeks between Choseok and Thanksgiving they are to write, express and demonstrate gratitude every day. I believe if they follow through they will be changed at the end of the challenge. I believe they will be humbled as they acknowledge all the blessings they receive. I know their relationship with God will be strengthened. Their confidence in Him will grow and this will increase their own confidence. I hope they will meet the challenge despite their busy schedules.

Next we served them homemade chili. Lots of chili. Two big stock pots filled with chili. They were so appreciative. They continually thanked us for each and every part of this celebration. The day ended and they went their separate ways. I loved seeing how much fun they had, but I was the one who needed to thank them. They made two senior missionaries very happy.


Elder Fairhurst and I had a second celebration. The next day we went to a Korean friend's home to celebrate Chuseok in traditional style. It was an honor, a privilege and quite an adventure. Let me just say: octopus, squid and shark. Got it? 









Kateeekapsheda

Friday, September 13th we attended the most exciting history lesson I have ever witnessed. A friend from church invited us to the reenactment of the Nakdong River Battle. It was held at the original battle site about 20 miles from Daegu, near Camp Carroll.

The first couple of hours we watched drill and ceremony, tai kwando demonstrations and various other ceremonial performances. There were also the typical addresses by political and military leaders. It was enjoyable and well done. But the true masterpiece was the reenactment itself.  A short video presentation set the stage by filling in some historical information and telling the story of Korean families impacted by the invasion and war. Then the bank of the river exploded with activity. The pyrotechnics literally rocked the whole area. ROK (Republic of Korea) and American soldiers portrayed the battling armies of the UN forces and invading North Koreans. I found myself engrossed in the scenes before me. It was an emotional experience. I was impressed that the hand of God was in the actual battle which was so critical to the outcome of the war. The Nakdong River was the last stronghold of the Pusan** Perimeter. Had the North Koreans been successful in their attempt to cross the river and take control, the path would have been cleared for their move toward the coast and the capture of the Port of Pusan. The UN forces, under the leadership of the United States Army, held the line with great effort and seemingly at first against terrible odds. Their victory turned the tide of the war as it turned back the advancing North Koreans.

General Walker, commander of the defending U.N. Forces, uttered the words, "Today, we will stand or die."  The South Korean commander, also a General officer, shouted, "If I take a step back, shoot me!"

I was again impressed with the link between South Korea and The United States. Time and time again these sentiments were expressed by those who spoke. Most poignant was a talk given by a 17 year old high school senior. She wondered aloud why anyone would lay their life down for a small country they had never heard of before. She expressed gratitude for her freedom and thanked the soldiers of the United Nations armies for their sacrifice. It has been a life changing experience for me to hear history from this point of view. I am grateful for this opportunity. 

An American general ended his talk with "Kateeekapsheda". The Korean woman next to me explained that it means "let's go together." I was touched by that comment - made to an audience of Korean war veterans, students, citizens, soldiers, and two senior American missionaries.

NOTE: Pusan is now known as Busan. The spelling of several Korean cities has changed to make the pronunciation more accurate. For example, Daegu used to be Taegu.

The Button Tin

This is my mother's mother- one of my favorite people ever. Grandmothers have a special connection with their grandchildren. I have learned that from both sides of the equation. We didn't often live near her, but we did get to visit often. How I loved trips to Grandma's house. My grandmother loved to sew. I have fond memories of looking at the stacks of bright fabric and the paper patterns folded in their envelopes. I always loved getting a new dress or pajamas made by Grandma. I also remember her button tin. It was an old Christmas cookie tin filled with mismatched buttons. Buttons left over from  projects and some she rescued from worn out clothing. Looking  at the different colors, shapes and sizes of buttons was fun. She saved them just in case she could use them in the future. She was very practical and very frugal.

I am going to share my own "button tin" with you today. A collection of unrelated pictures and information for you to enjoy. No philosophizing this time! I hope you have fun or at least learn a thing or two! The information I will share comes from Korean friends here in Daegu. It may or may not apply to South Korea in general.

Our door was "heart attacked" with this
beautiful paper wreath. A welcome
gift from two Sister missionaries.

--Writing someone's name in red is inappropriate. It means they are dead. I will keep that in mind, and hopefully I don't read my own name in red in the near future.

--Koreans have a different way of determining some one's age. At birth you are one. You turn two on the following lunar new year. So it is possible for an infant to actually be considered two years old. I am not fond of this system. When you ask a Korean his age, he will usually tell you both his Korean age and his American age.


A little one-on-one b-ball with "Troy"
at our church's outdoor court. He was sure he could beat an old man.
Some how Troy was off his game.



 


 --Most people here live in apartments. The traditional system for renting is very different than anything I have heard of before. The owner sets a fee, which is a percentage of the value of the home. It could be $30,000 or much more. The tenant pays the fee upfront. They usually have to get a loan from the bank. They typically do not make monthly payments to the landlord. They do not rent it for any specific amount of time. When they are ready to leave the apartment, the owner returns the money in full, minus any costs for damages. The benefit  for the owner is that they can use the money for investments or business until the renter moves out. This tradition is beginning to change. Some apartments now set a lower move-in fee and then also charge a small monthly rent.


This is a bench outside a
cultural center a couple
miles from our apartment.
I wonder if anyone ever sits on it!

Whenever we walk around down town we see lots of school kids in their uniforms. It seems like they come and go all hours of the day. So we asked our friend Sup about the school system. Mandatory school attendance does not begin until about six or seven years of age. Kindergarten is optional and people used to have to pay for their kids to go. But Korea's population is below replacement rate, so the government now offers free kindergarten as one of several incentives to encourage Koreans to have more children. Elementary school has grades one through five. Middle school includes grades one through three, and so does high school. A senior is considered to be in grade three of high school  The kids go earlier and stay later as they advance to higher grades. They go to different high schools based on their academic accomplishments and their future careers. High schools that focus on academics have very long days. They start at about 7:00 am and end about 10:00 pm. After school ends for the day, the kids go home and do a couple more hours of homework. To quote Sup, high school is when the "nightmare begins".
I love this stack of tea cups.
It's outside some kind of an office
building on a very busy street. I don't know
if it has any relevance to the business. I just like it!
**Note: Months later I found out it's an apartment building. Our friends the Miller family lived there.

That's it for this post. Now you know a few things that are very much part of the Korea adventure.

 



Peace on Earth?

John 14:27 Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

A few days ago Elder Fairhurst shared a headline with me as he was reading our hometown newspaper on-line. It was about the most recent attack, the latest massacre. The nation, cause or incident is not the premise for this post. It seems like there's always some battle, or attack, or slaughter at the center of the nightly news and screaming from the front page of each newspaper. Some shocking evidence of inhumanity that incites fear and sadness. I listened to some of the sorrowful details then responded with a sigh and said; "There will never be peace in this world."
After I mulled that over for a while, I realized that I had misspoken. This world will never be at peace, until the Savior of mankind returns. That is true. But there is peace in this world. I thought back to my blog post on sanctuaries. There are many places of peace in this world. More importantly, each one of us can be at peace  regardless of what goes on around us. Jesus Christ is the Prince of Peace. As we strive to be his disciples and exercise faith in him. we can feel of His peace. That is a reassuring truth, for His peace can not be taken from us.

Monday we returned to Apsan park. This time with fourteen young energetic missionaries. We had so much fun. We met at the subway transfer station then rode to the subway stop closest to the entrance of the park. Then the hike began. I am sure we were quite a sight as we walked the streets until we entered the park. Yet even with the laughter and chatter of our group, the park was as beautiful and peaceful as I remembered. I wanted to bottle the wonderful cool pine scented air and take it home. We decided to take a different path than we did the time before. A few minutes into the park we came to a Korean War memorial and museum. I was a little surprised that all of the missionaries wanted to stop, pleasantly surprised. Our Korean museum guide shared the history of her country with deep feeling. The young missionary that leads our District translated. I was amazed at how little I really knew about that war. I knew even less about the extreme hardships the Korean people have endured. I was moved to tears several times. One story was especially disturbing. The South Korean army was ill prepared and poorly equipped to fight against the invading North Korean army. They suffered devastating losses and their army was decimated. It got so bad that they had to draft middle-school boys into the army. Eleven, twelve and thirteen year old boys were armed and sent to battle. I have three grandsons that age. The thought of such a thing broke my heart. Our tour guide expressed how grateful the Korean people were for the Americans. At the end of the tour I asked our District leader to translate something for me. I simply said, "It makes me sad that your country has had to go through so much., but you have become very strong." She responded with warmth. I only understood two words. Megook and chingu. America and friend. This was an experience I hope I never forget. Those headlines and broadcasts of war are about real people. Children of our Heavenly Father. Our brothers and sisters. No matter the political stand, we should have empathy for them. We should pray for them. We should pray for peace.