Adventures a Plenty

I promise I will post more about South Korea but for now I have something i have been reflecting on that I want to process out some more.

I am learning to accept the fact that I will never just have one career path in my life...and that's okay! And not only is that okay, it's exceedingly exciting. That means I can do more than one thing in my life and I can follow the many dreams I have for myself. I have already done so many things that I have wanted to do and now I get to do another by travellng and teaching. It's actually super exciting and freeing.

So those of you who struggle with choosing to do one thing, don't fret. There are many opportunities and lots of life in front of you to work towards many of them. Those of you who love your career and feel like you're not adventurous, don't fret! Doing what you love is just as adventurous and exciting. Those of you who don't know yet what you want to do, don't fret! It's an exciting time to dream about the possibilities and figure out what things you may or may not want to do in life. All of it is an adventure and it's super exciting!

Day 1 in South Korea

August 18th 2016

Well, I have been awake since 4am, jet lag is not all that fun. At the time I had no idea that anything could be open to get some food so I bascially lay awake starving until 10am when I started to venture out for the first time by myself. The only thing I really found open was a KFC so I embraced my American hertiage and got a chicken sandwhich and some fries.

Thank goodness a fellow teacher came to pick me up to walk me to the school becuase I probably would have gotten lost since I was driven here the night before. It's a very short walk from my hotel. It was super hot and humid today.

I spent the afternoon and evening shadowing my fellow teachers. They all are pretty cool. The teaching is straight forward because all of the curriculum is provided for us. I will have my formal training in Seoul next week.

After work, my collegues and I went to dinner. We got (you probably guessed it ;) ) Indian food! It was delicious. I love that I have been in Korea for a day and a half and I have really yet to eat Korean food. C'est la vie.

A coworker happily walked me back to my hotel room so I wouldn't get lost and we stopped at a convienence store so I could get some breakfast and a snack. There are so many places in such short distances. I have never lived in a city before. It's nice to just walk outside and bascially be feet away from just about anything I could need.

I don't really have any anicdotes for today. Mostly I am exhausted and can't continue to reflect on the day. More to come I am sure.

TTFN

Journey to South Korea

I want to start off by saying that I didn't reflect on how long 16 hours really is until I started traveling to South Korea.

August 16th 2016
Morris and I drove to the Indianapolis airport in the rain with my 4 checked bags of luggage weighing just at or a little over 50 pounds each plus my carry on that I know is a couple of inches too big but needed the extra room and figured I would risk it and a book bag. If you live in Indiana, you know that driving on 65 is not all that awesome. For those of you who don't know, there's construction everywhere in West Lafayette including on highway 65. (Something I am definitely grateful to get away from). This particular highway is mostly two lanes the whole way with a lot of trucks driving. The speed limit is 70mph on most of it but for trucks that is not the case. So you have speed demon drivers who try to weave in and out of the trucks who are in slowing the traffic down...in the rain...with an extra heavy car, getting cut off is not really my cup of tea. But regardless of all of these things, Morris and I arrived safely at the Indy airport.

Just driving up to the departures wasn't going to be helpful because I am insane and have a ton of luggage. So we park and drag all my luggage to the Delta counter. The lady was gracious and let my lightly overpacked bags go by but I definitely had to pay for the two extra bags. Morris and I hug goodbye. I realize that the longer I let the hug go on the more difficult it was going to be to say goodbye so I let go earlier than I wanted. We parted ways and I realized as I turned the corner that there is food before the TSA line so I hurry up and call Morris to see if he wants to sit and have breakfast for a few minutes. We did. It was delightful and then we said goodbye for real. I have already been asked if that was difficult but honestly it wasn't. I think mostly because this whole trip seems like a dream and not reality.

I went through the TSA line with no issues and headed to my gate. I sat in my seat for my flight to Atlanta and was pleasantly surprised that I had an empty seat next to me. I think I slept a little but not all that much. It was a really short flight. Getting off my flight, there was a lovely gentleman there directing those of us with connecting flights. He pointed to Terminal F and off I went to find my flight to Seoul.

I decided to cave and buy a neck pillow. I was slowly starting to think about how long 15 hours in a plane was going to be. I have been on a few planes before, the longest being to Europe but that was only like 6 hours. Buying a neck pillow seemed like the right thing to do.

I checked in for my flight and they asked me if I would be willing to change seats. They would still give me an aisle seat but it would be closer to the front and then another family could sit together. Me, being the person I am, happily obliged. I would come to regret that decision for the next 15 hours.

So here I want to pause and share my confusion about boarding planes. The system seems ridiculous. Why do they board first class first? They sit up front and are therefore disturbed by the rest of us who have to pass them. Also, passing those luxurious seats is just not fair. They looked amazing and would lay down into a bed...super jealous but I don't have that kind of money. They charge like 4x more for those seats!

Anyway, I found my seat next to two children probably ages 8 and 12? They seem to be brother and sister. They are well mannered and fairly quiet so it's not terrible to sit next to them. They do get restless and move and or need to use the restroom every time I am just about to be asleep but that's nothing compared to the "demon child" who is sitting behind me.

Okay, fine, demon child is a really strong word and it could be worse. But for the age she looks, she definitely shouldn't be acting how she is. She is the loudest person on the plane. I am pretty sure she is about 7 or 8 years old. She doesn't realize she is loud because she has her headphones on but yells "mom" fairly frequently. And by yell I mean whine relentlessly to her poor mother who is trying to sleep. She decides to sit in such a way that her feet are on my seat so every time she moves I feel....everything. I didn't realize this at first and was trying to give her the benefit of the doubt. It is a really long flight to sit still. There is a tablet like monitor on the seat so it will get touched along with the food tray and the pocket but I saw how she was sitting when I walked past and then I understood why everytime I was about to get into REM sleep I would be stirred awake. I keep thinking I should turn around and say something along the lines of "Hey kiddo, I know this is a really long flight and my feet are restless too but if you could be more gentle to my seat I would really appreciate it and be able to sleep" but I am not sure how this kid would take that and if mom would be okay with me "disciplining" and by discipline I mean politely asking her kid to stop. So I sit here and write instead.

My head hurts. My stomach feels funny and really I just want to be in a less cramped space to walk and then sleep. But that time won't come for another three plus hours.

In other news, the tablet entertainment on the plane is awesome. I partially slept through the following movies, Up, Monster's Inc, and Whiskey Tango Foxtrot. I watched Zootopia and currently have Captain America: Civil War playing in the background. And this is just my individulal screen. I also have played Pac Man and can probably do many other things but I havne't played with it enough because of trying to sleep.

We have had two meals already that were definitely interesting. I have never had Korean food so I am not sure if it is typical Korean food or airplane Korean food. I will find out soon enough though.

Maybe demon child will finally fall alseep because it is 11:39pm EST and I am pretty sure she hasn't slept at all yet. But that also means it is 12:40pm in Korea which means I should try to stay awake to get used to the new time zone...not that I could sleep anway. I still keep getting kicked and it's just not comfortable to sleep on a plane. I am not sure how one travels so frequently on long plane rides like these. Perhaps I will find some trick for next time.

August 17th 2016
In case you were curious, demon child did end of falling asleep for like the last two hours of the trip but of course at that point I couldn't sleep and was basically just trying not to get sick.

My flight landed and we taxied a really long time to get to the tunnel with which we would exit. I could see lots of water and I imagine it is the shape of the country and runways that made the airport so far away. And really it probably wasn't that far, I just really needed to get off that plane.

I went through immigration and got all of my bags and was met with a man who had a sign with my name on it. He spoke very limited English but we mangaed to get all of my bags in the van and take off for an hour car ride to Suwon. I wasn't really ready for that because I already felt sick and now I am in a older van that's really bumpy with an over zealous aggressive driver. Not a great combination but I managed not to get sick. We arrived at the school. They were suprised by all my baggage but we made do. I stepped in to the school briefly while we chatted about the next couple of weeks. A different man took me to my hotel room.  I am finally not moving anymore and that feels great. I am over tired and hungry. Tomorrow I will have to find my way back to the school because right now we are in the middle of summer camp so they have much longer hours at the school than normal. I think I will manage.

Pictures to come. Stay tuned for me adventures here in Korea.

2015: A Year of Discipline Week 1 lessons

God is still in control.
Grace is a choice.
Discipline is a choice.
Cutting sugar cold turkey takes a toll on the body physically and emotionally.
Patience really is a virtue especially with one's self.
I do feel better in all areas of my life when I make healthy choices.
Having grace for myself is one of the hardest things on my list of disciplines but probably the most important.
Reading Scripture is important even if it brings more questions than answers.
I feel closer to God when I journal regularly.
I am a better person when I am around people more than I am by myself.
Yoga is fun.
Love is a choice. It's also a choice to love yourself.
Loving myself is not easy.
Doing something daily a few minutes at a time really does make a difference when learning to be disciplined.
I didn't strictly stick to my diet for the whole week but I didn't gorge away and I did have grace for myself when eating one little Reece bite.
I didn't read my Bible everyday but again, I had grace for myself and didn't flip out that I am now behind on my reading plan. It's really okay. I also don't have to play catch up. It's not going anywhere and who says I have to read the actual passages on the specific calendar days?
I have peace.

Lesson #1 in discipline

I was wrong, this may be the definition of discipline.

2015: Year of Discipline

Recently, I had a conversation with a friend and was convicted particularly about my spiritual life. She was talking about how she just created a spiritual health plan because she knows she needs one and is not particularly excited about pursuing God but wants to and if she doesn't create a plan for herself, she will probably continue down the negative path that she has been spiraling. I can relate. I am there and not just in my spiritual life but also in every other aspect: physical, emotional, relational, and mental. Today, I decided that I am done falling down that dark spiral. I want to get healthy in all of these areas. I am deeming 2015 the year of discipline. That may seem odd but I believe it's the path towards healthiness.

For instance, when you learn about what it takes to be physically healthy it means making sure you get good nutrients in your body, and excersing. That takes a lot of discipline. You have to be diligent about the choices you make of what food enters your body and how you choose to get up and move...or not. It takes making good choices and great discipline. This is not just in our physical lives but also in spiritual, relational, mental, and emotional. I want to make healthy choices and discipline myself in all areas of my life. It's easy to get caught up in the everyday busyness and laziness.  It's easy to say I am going to sit and watch one episode on Netflix and then end up watching a season and a half. I am just going to have a few potato chips but the next thing you know, the whole bag is gone. I am going to read my Bible everyday, then one day you forget and then the next five days go by and you're like "what's the use anymore?". I am going to have that conversation I need to have with a person that involves conflct, but you run away instead. I can relate because I have done all of these things more than once.

I want to stop this unhealthy cycle. I want to be able to watch only one episode on Netflx. I want to be able to choose to eat something healthy and then have only one cookie. I want to dive into hard conversations with the people around me. I want to seek Jesus in the midst of hard stuff. I want to be healthy damn it. It's going to be a hard road and a long journey but I think if I start with small acts of discipline, I can get there.

Here are some things I am going to commit myself to this year:
Spending 30 minutes a day reading my Bible, praying, and journaling.
Making smart decisions about what food I eat.
Excersing at least twice a week for at least 30 minutes.
Blogging at least once a week about my journey in discipline.
Spending time with a friend in need at least twice a month.
Making a real dinner regularly (and then eating left overs)
Small cleaning every day so it doesn't all pile up.
Engaging in difficult conversation with my husband on a regular basis to develop better communication skills and a healthier marriage.
Walking my dog more regularly (assuming we can go outside...I mean I do live in Indiana).
Being more realistic about the things I can and cannot do.
Realizing that there will be days I will fail from this list, forgive myself, and try again the next day.
Have more grace for myself and others.
Choose my emotions more clearly. (Allowing myself to be angry but then choosing to let it go for example).
Read more books.
Play my flute more often.
Spend time in silence at least once a week.

I know I have more things I want to commit to this year but I think this is a great list to start with. I obviously have to actually make a plan instead of just listing things I want to do because otherwise they will not get done and I will continue to be stuck. I know this because I have done this before. It's the classic new years resolution syndrome right? It's easy to say I am going to do this, this year and then after one week, you quit. Having a plan is a really great start. I will share with you now one plan that I do have to get me started.

My food habits.
I did this back in October and November, the slow carb diet. I am not really one for dieting. There are many reasons that it is not appealing but I believe it will help me to be more disciplined in the long run and help me get to a healthier place. I am reading this book called "The 4 hour Body". In it, the author has a lot of interesting facts about our bodies. I won't go into all the details (it's a really big book and I haven't even read it all yet...one of the books that I want to read all the way through this year) but in it he describes this diet called the slow carb diet. Bascially, you eat meat and veggies for six days a week and then on the seventh day, you can eat whatever you want. I did that for about six weeks in the fall and lost 15 pounds. I was set to continue but ended up getting my wisdom teeth out and never truly committed myself back to that point. So, starting on Sunday, I am going to again begin this diet. It's not really about losing weight, although I would really love to be able to fit back into this one red dress that I still have, but it is about getting healthy and disciplining my body. I am hoping that if I continue this diet and get to a heatlhy place, that I will be able to use some of the practices within the diet to temper out how I eat on a regular basis not having such strict rules but being smart in the choices I make. I think that if I start off with a stricter dicipline it will guide me to a healthier way of living in the future. It definintely isn't an easy diet because I can't even have fruit or cheese or rice but I think it's a sacrifice I can make toward the path of healthiness.

I know that there will be days that I am not so good at following my goals to becoming well roundedly healthy but I want to choose to have grace for myself and continue moving forward. I am excited to see where God takes me on this journey. I think it will definitely be an interesting year. I will keep you posted on how the start of my diet goes next week and other plans I have for the year of discipline. Maybe it will inspire you to join me along on the journey.

I leave you with some interesting thoughts:

Definitions of discipline

noun
1. training to act in accordance with rules; drill
2. activity, exercise, or regimen that develops or imporves a skill: training
3. punishment inflicted by way of correction and training
4. the rigor or training effect of experience, adversity, etc.
5. behavior in accord with rules of conduct; behavior and order maintained by training and control
6. a set or system of rules and regulations
7. Ecclesiastical. the system of government regulating the practice of a church as distinguished from its doctrine
8. an instrument of punishment, especially a whip or scourge, used in the practice of self-mortification or as an instrument of chastisement in certain religious communities
9. a branch of instruction or learning

verb
10. to train by instruction and exercise
11. to bring to a state of order and obedience by training and control
12. to punish or penalize in order to train and control; correct; chastise

Scripture on discipline

Proverbs 20:30 Pysical discipline may well save them from death.

Psalm 94:12 Joyful are those you discipline, lord, those you teach with your instructions.

Psalm 119:67 I used to wander off until you disciplined me; but now I closely follow your word.

Proverbs 12:1 To learn, you must love discipline; it is stupid to hate correction.

Proverbs 13:1 A wise child accepts a parent's discipline; a mocker refuses to listen to correction.

Proverbs 15:5 Only a fool despises a parent's discipline; whoever learns from correction is wise.

Proverbs 23:23 Get the truth and never sell it; also get wisdom, discipline, and good judgement.

2 Timothy 1:7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.

1 Corinthians 9:27 I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified.

Titus 1:8 Rather, he must enjoy having guests in his home, and he must love what is good. He must live wisely and be just. He must live a devout and diciplined life.

Hebrews 12:11 No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening - It's painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those are are trained in this way.

Quotes on Discipline

"Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment." Jim Rohn

"To enjoy good health, to bring true happinness to one's family, to bring peace to all, one must first discipline and control one's own mind. If a man can control his mind he can find the way to Enlightenment, and all wisdom and virtue will naturally come to him." Buddha

"Knowledge comes, but wisdom lingers. It may not be difficult to store up in the mind a vast quantity of facts within a comparatively short time, but the ability to form judgments requires the severe discipline of hard work and the tempering heat of experience and maturity." Calvin Coolidge

"Character contributes to beauty. It fortifies a woman as her youth fades. A mode of conduct, a standard of courage, discipline, fortitude, and integrity can do a great deal to make a woman beautiful." Jacqueline Bisset

"Success isn't measured by money or power or social rank. Success is measured by your discipline and inner peace." Mike Ditka

"Confidence comes from discipline and training". Robert Kiyosaki

"We must all suffer one of two things: the pain of discipline or the pain of regret or disappointment." Jim Rohn

"It is a full time job being honest one moment at a time, remembering to love, to honor, to repect. It is a practice, a discipline, worthy of every moment." Jasmine Guy

"Self-respect is the fruit of discipline; the sense of dignity grows with the ability to say no to oneself." Abraham Joshua Heschel

"Once you have commitment, you need the discipline and hard work to get you there." Haile Gebrselassie

"The discipline you learn and character you build from setting and achieving a goal can be more valuable than the achievement of the goal itself." Bo Bennett

"Most of us don't mind doing what we ought to do when it doesn't interfere with what we want to do, but it takes discipline and maturity to do what we ought to do whether we want to or not." Joseph B. Wirthlin

Birthday Puppy Update

I found the puppy I would love to get. Please pray they haven't sold already. And it would be a lot less money than I originally projected :-)

Here's a picture
http://dogs.oodle.com/view/2-male-shih-tzu-mixed-puppies/3640483222-indianapolis-in/