Today was lovely :)

Breakfast: cereal and milk; tea

Lunch: Mushroom and egg soup; kim chi; shrimp fried rice; persimmon; garlic toast

Dinner: a Dunkin' Doughnuts cinnamon role and a Starbucks latte (my kids brought these to me at like 4:30pm)

Today was a test day, so it was eerily quiet at the school... I was alone in the library (my "office") until rught before lunch, when Yoon Jin came rushing in. Apparently her son (who is in kindergarten) was very sick with flu and she had to take him to the hospital :(

So, I walked to lunch alone for the first time and sat with the principal and head teacher... even though we can't speak eachother's language, we had good "conversation" with gestures and a lot of smiles. They were laughing at my eating today. First of all, I thought the persimmon was a tomatoe and was dreading eating it. I bit into it, skin and all, and they were like "NO!! NO!" They showed me how to peel the skin off, and eat it correctly... on my first try, I had gooey sticky fruit all over my hands and face. They got me a second one, and I did a little better :)

When I was walking back to the office (again, by myself for the first time), I stopped to chat with some students on the playground who always yell "Dan-yil! Hello!" when I walk by after lunch...

They were playing on the teeter totter and wanted me to get on. I said, "No! Too big!" They all said "NO!!! Skinny! Small! Very beautiful!" I admit, I like hearing these kinds of compliments way too much. I think the Korean people must be very complimentary in general.

Before going back to my desk I stopped at the teachers' lounge. Without Yoon Jin translating, I knew I wouldn't be able to have a conversation with the other teachers, but I just wanted to show them I want to be their friend and be involved in what's going on... I wanted to put forth effort.

My efforts were definately rewarded. I can't explain how a conversation can be so satisfying when no words are being spoken, but I can truly say that time with the other teachers (the head teacher and the special ed teacher) was truly one of the best convos I've had. We bonded :)

Yoon Jin was leading play practice for "Snow White" all afternoon in the library. This is a daily occurance. The first time, I was SOO annoyed. I couldn't believe the sheer VOLUME of the kids, and how hyper they were. It's amazing how my attitude has changed... when I no longer see these kids through Western "goggles", things are much clearer. I loved being there with them.

In between scenes, I would try speaking some Korean with the kids, and have them write down their names in hopes of memorizing them all. I also showed them I am interested in them by watching YouTube videos of "2pm" and "Big Bang" - two famous pop groups that the kids love. They thought that was pretty funny. Kids are really the same everywhere... that's one thing I love so much about them. Culture and clothing and color may be different, but the inside is the same.

I know I shouldn't have favorites... but I can simply not explain the way I love this one little boy. I don't even know his name - he doesn't really talk. Yoon Jin tried explaining his situation to me - from what I understood and have observed, he is most likely autistic and perhaps mentally retarded as well. But I don't care what the world says is "wrong" with this little one... he is incredible. He draws these absolutely astoundingly awesome pictures, and always comes and shows me. I feel so honored that he would share these drawings with me. He works so hard on them, and they are REALLY good. I think he will be famous one day. And he is really sharp. He may be smart in different ways than people would normally associate intelligence with, but he is SMART. Smarter than me, for sure. He is so special. Every time I see his face, I feel so much joy. He's a treasure :)