And thus my summer work has officially ended!

The first week of summer in Korea: Have preliminary meetings with the Wellesley/BU volunteer team.

The second week of summer in Korea: Meet the other college/graduate school students participating in the Ministry of Unification program, meet Ministry of Unification officials and the Vice Minister, attend workshops on social media, go on a 3 night 4 day trip all along the DMZ, starting from the west and going to the east.

The third week of summer in Korea: Go to Hangyeoulleh Middle and High School, live among the students there, all of whom escaped from North Korea, many of whom lived in China for years and years before they finally came to South Korea.

The fourth week of summer in Korea: Miss out on going to the Hana Centers and volunteering to work with newly arrived North Korean defectors (relatively new, they will all have been in South Korea at least three months beforehand) to go to CIEE orientation. Meet the students, go on a 2 night 3 day field trip to different parts of Korea.


The fifth week of summer in Korea: Have a final time with the Ministry of Unification, and the Governor and other people in charge of Gyeonggi Province, go to the JSA for the second time, see a comedic theatrical performance that incorporates traditional Korean instruments, have a workshop on Culture Shock for CIEE.

Intermittently: Going to church, eating good food, meeting with friends from Boston, friends made during the DMZ tour, moving from Jen's apartment in Jamshil to Yonsei's SK Global House. I haven't gone shopping once!

I'm sad the time of Wellesley/BU volunteer team in Korea is up. This end is bittersweet, but relieving in some ways. I have definitely learned a lot more about the complexities of North Korea and why, as someone told me last semester, focusing just on the refugees/defectors, or just on the human rights issues there, is admirable but not exactly the whole picture. The issue of unification is definitely one that I have been mulling over, and I think my view of what North Korea most needs and suffers most from has changed. Before, I was pained over the concentration camps, prisons, starvation, economic turmoil and lack of any freedom. Now, I still pray about those things but I also think about the difficulties North Koreans face outside of North Korea, and I also think I understand those other issues more thoroughly than before. Meeting people from North Korea is surreal in a way--these new acquaintances and friends have suffered so much, yet on the outside, at first glance, you would have no idea. Only after spending more time with them do you start to see how their past has shaped their present and future, and how they think. And throughout all this, I have seen the huge, huge difference that salvation makes in the lives of these defectors--some have accepted Christ into their lives, and their whole attitude and life has changed.

Three things that I am super glad about that are unrelated to the academic nature of the past few weeks: I met good sunbaes from the DMZ trip with whom I know I can call to hang out with or if I need help, I became closer with all the girls on the Wells/BU volunteer team (we were really random, none of us knew every other member beforehand), and I experienced a lot of Korean culture that was aided by having interaction with important people, North Koreans, Korean students, other college students, and traveling. I wish I could record my thoughts during the important moments in depth... but since that obviously isn't the case this will have to do.

Also...people should care about North Korea. It's not that I think everyone should be as involved (or not involved, lots of people do much more) as I have been (plus I really don't know how I'm going to incorporate this into my future, since I am not planning on having my whole life revolve around this issue, necessarily), but I realize that, at the very least, awareness of what is going on is important.

Awareness can lead to a broader worldview, a more purposeful life, thoughtfulness, and a change in attitude and behavior (for the better). Also, unification is something that needs to seriously be considered. Not that I strongly believe or disbelieve the possibility of a unified Korean peninsula, but that unification may be the best way to achieve peace, and is always a possibility even if it seems impossible--so we must be ready. And that unification shouldn't be wanted just because the Korean people are still one in blood and biologically the same, or that our families are split because of the divide, or that because we were once one means we must aim to be one again, but because the communist dictatorship will one day fall, and the scenario of unification may be the best outcome to work toward making possible. There are so many facets of North Korea that are completely heartbreaking yet fascinating, and I am definitely convinced that, even if it isn't my career or life, that I will work hard to spread awareness (not in an annoying way, don't be scared this is all I'm going to talk about when I get back lol) when I can.

After these past few weeks I am just more and more grateful everyday for my parents, my friends, America, the passion God has given me for this issue, the amazing opportunities that God provided for our team (which was originally going to just volunteer at a Hana Center for four weeks but ended up giving interviews on the radio, meeting important people, participating in official government programs), the people on the team, Utah, my sister and brother, my Wellesley friends, the weather of Boston and Utah since the weather is so bad over here, the new friends I have made here, my Koreanness and my Americanness...

I still don't know what I want to do with my life after graduating, but I am hoping and praying that during this semester and on further reflection of what I have undergone, God will reveal a little more of His plan for me...

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And now to digress to the FUN TIDBITS SECTION

Tidbit 1: Koreans don't have motions that are meant to be used in awkward situations, like the two-flippered awkward turtle sign so many of us know and embrace. Then again, all of the students in my CIEE group were completely clueless about awkward motions (outside of the turtle) too. Is this a Korean American church thing? (John Byun from BC, I'm talking to you, even though you'll probably never read this blog or this post. ^^) So I showed my Korean and CIEE buddies awkward snail, snowman, clam, lollipop, moose, parked car, parallel parked car, turtle, turtle has babies, balloon, koala, inchworm, shark, cactus, starfish, and jellyfish (JiYeon unni, I will never be able to be as good of an awkward koala as you are) and the looks on their faces... were amazing. AMAZING. Now everyone in my study abroad program (well, the guys) use awkward moose in the stupidest moments and I'm like seriously guys, you're abusing it now...

and the Koreans are like... uh... in Korean culture, when it gets awkward, we grab our glasses and drink more! ^_^

Tidbit 2: Almost everyone knows that I adore Choi Minho, the rapper and tallest guy in SHINee, a male K-pop group. Well, Christine went to the practice performance of Inkigayo, which is one of many music shows through which Korean pop stars perform for the masses, and she saw them! She was actually reprimanded for taking pictures and videorecording some of the performances beforehand, but when she saw SHINee was up next she was determined to record it for me. :)

Tidbit 3: A couple days after I hear about this, Grace from BU calls me at night and tells me she just saw SHINee on the street in Hongdae. They were filming a show and she said she knew she had a duty to take many pictures for me. :) My friends are so thoughtful...

Tidbit 4: I went to a performance called Fanta Stick Thursday evening, which had many performances of tradiational Korean instruments blended into a comedic plot. 송승헉 from 가을 something drama or other was there to watch the performance too, so I saw him and was sitting on the row to the right of his row. People went nuts, there were body guards and soooo many cameramen... and old ladies and young ladies taking pictures... and guys taking pictures with their cell phones... I guess this guy is pretty famous! He was pretty cute. Good body frame.

Tidbit 5: For those of you who were in my Korean Language class 2009-2010... I ran into our TA, Jaehyun Jo in 여의도. It was super awkward... I was so shocked I was spluttering. And I found out he is a graduate student at Yonsei, so he is actually taking classes here... and lives in the iHouse, the dorm that is right next to and connected to mine, the SK Global House. Is this a setup for more awkward moments in the future? Is God telling me I need to form a friendship with Jo 선생님 for some reason? This coincidence is weird, especially because I ran into him in Boston one time during the summer (coming back from my internship in Harvard Square) too!