Ieri, Oggi, e Domani (Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow)

Ieri
Two weeks ago, my dad came to visit Kris and me. He arrived on Friday night (11/27) and he left Sunday (11/29) at noon. I am still caught off-guard of his efforts because, I mean, he flew for about the same amount of time that he was actually here. I remember doing that freshman year of college – NYC to SFO. I was hit with flight delays during my Thanksgiving break, and it turned out that I was in SF for two days and I flew for one day. (For the record, that’s why I never showed up to Thanksgivings during college). As a 19 year old, I made the conscious decision to never do something that stupid again. It was such a big effort for an unrewarding experience (most of the time I was tired). Well, at 50 million years old, my dad did that, and he one-upped me. He changed countries, all-inclusive of a 17 hour time difference. What is more, we didn’t let him rest (actually, he had to let me rest). When he got here, we went to eat, and we went to the bars. We got a few drinks, hung out with a few of my co-workers, and then went to sleep. Kris and my father woke up, walked for a couple hours (while I slept), and then we headed to Seoul. We showed my dad all of Seoul. We showed him 5 of the biggest districts in Seoul all in one day. We walked, trained, cabbed and bussed everywhere. We even made a little time for the sauna. The next morning, he left after having to take care of me (as Saturday was particularly tiring, haha). In all, he asked a million questions, and we taught him as much as we knew about Korea. We enjoyed our short time together, and I guess some things will never change – I am always getting taken care of like a little kid…

Last weekend, it was Joohee’s birthday. The weekend was rather pleasant … just not for me. The weekend was actually really frustrating, and I tried my best to fake it. Let me start over – the weekend was difficult, and I tried my best to not ruin an otherwise enjoyable weekend with any selfish behavior and temporary inconveniences. The logistics: go with her best friend and her best friend’s boyfriend snowboarding. We rented a car, got a pension (a combination of a hostel and a hotel), and had some beer. Sounds good, right? For Joohee and her friends, it was. For me, I had a rather different experience. First, I didn’t sleep the night before so I was exhausted. Second, I had to drive, which would have been more awesome had I slept the night before. Third, the friends spoke Korean. The language spoken 99.9% of the time => Korean!!! Fourth, there was a blizzard. It was 7 below (Celsius), and I was not anticipating for the weather to be that drastic. Let’s just say I was underdressed for snowboarding. Fifth, I didn’t get to snowboard. They were all beginner snowboarders. Joohee was good (enough), but I didn’t get off the bunny slopes … and I didn’t ditch them, either. Guess what my underdressed self did in the blizzard!!! Sixth, they wanted to get wasted when we got home. Amazingly, it’s not as fun when you’re freezing, exhausted, and no one speaks the same language (I seriously felt like I might as well have drank by myself). Otherwise, Joohee had a good time on her birthday, and that’s all that really matters. Happy birthday to her =).

Oggi
It’s the end of another semester – the longest one I will have to endure here at Avalon. As you know, it has come with its ups and downs. I taught the lowest level where the kids were young and impatient, and I dealt with the older kids who are too cool for school. At times, I was incredibly frustrated, and I struggled to hold on to myself. Still, I kept at it. I stayed with them (and they stayed with me). Looking back, I’m glad I did, and I’m glad they did. I have noticed a significant improvement in all my kids in such a short amount of time. And, I had a lot of kids pass to the next level. In short, I’m excited to get new kids, but, at the same time, I’m sad because I will certainly miss the ones I had. Pictures (of my favorite classes) coming soon.

As I am about to embark on my 3rd of four semesters, my campus and my perception of this school is going to drastically change. Not only are we losing a significant amount of children, we are losing many teachers. Out of about 30 teachers, we are losing six, four of which I really enjoy. One of them is actually one of my best friends at the office. She was the one who helped me with everything; she even helped teach me Korean. Another teacher (one that is staying) actually came crying to me earlier today, so it was a very sad moment. But, as I said, when one door closes, another opens…

e Domani
Later, I will celebrate the leaving of my aforementioned friend, and I will get to spend time with her before she walks a different path. I am certainly excited, and I hope that my having to go into work tomorrow morning will not damper my mood. Nonetheless, I anticipate a great night full of joy, laughter, and more laughter.
Anyways, I have to get out of here. This semester was way too long, and I need to go have a little bit of fun. Hope everyone else is doing well. Hopefully, I can update again before or during Christmas. If not, I wish everyone a happy holiday season!

Love,
Kyle