Farewell to Korea

The day after the movers came and we packed up and left for the hotel, I drove back to the apartment to grab some leftover items to leave at the thrift store’s donation shed. When I walked into the apartment, it was like deja vu, and I felt like it was 2 years ago, when we were first shown this place by our realtor. But standing in the entry way and realizing that those two years have flown by and now it is empty because we are leaving, and not just moving in, is crazy.It’s great and it is sad. It is bittersweet and exciting. A new chapter. A new house in the near future. Time to see family and friends. A time for Daniel to get a good break from work and for us to get all the puppy love from Murphy! But this is truly the first time that we have to leave a piece of our hearts and our lives in a country across the world. I never thought I would be saying that 4 years ago, at the end of high school. I wanted to travel the world and mom told me in a loving, parenting way, “honey you need to get a job and make money first to be able to travel the globe.” Well, this is the family joke that God orchestrated without us knowing until the month before our wedding.”See mom, I do get to travel the world like I wanted!” (What I told her when Daniel told me of the news of our next location.) But dang, I never knew the price that would come with it. I would never want to trade this experience for anything, but I do wish the heartache of leaving dear friends behind would not come with it. It is a gift to be able to worship alongside other brothers and sisters in Christ, who have the same worldview as you, and who live halfway across the world!

So even though I still have a Korean cultural post coming up in the future, I felt like I needed to write my final thoughts from our time in Korea! I would like to start off by saying that before I entered the country itself, I thought Korean BBQ was their special BBQ sauce, not how the meat is cooked (typically by you) in the middle of your table. And thankfully they do not drive on the opposite side of the road, like they do in Japan. But, you do have to bag your groceries and items at the common store, so bring your own bags! (And be pleasantly surprised when the taxes are already included in the shelf price for all items.) I have several tidbit facts to mention that do not really fit into any of the cultural snapshots, and what’s special about them is that they were some of the first facts I was taught about this country by a friend.

There are four popular birds in Korea, and they are commonly mentioned in folktales. The magpie is the sign for good luck, crows mean bad luck, white cranes stand for immortality, and sparrows typically symbolize the joy that comes from living a long life. Beef is very expensive in Korea since there is limited land to raise cows on farms, but the local beef is great quality. Lots of meat is imported from America and Australia. Black goat and pheasant meat is unique and liked in Korea.

Korea had a caste system (thanks to Confucius beliefs), which ended during the Japanese reign from 1905 to 1945. Confucianism did help with the foundation of many of the lifestyles and practices in Korea, which are slowly dying out with Korea following the Western world. For example, it is taught in Korea that showing emotion is a sign of weakness, so smiling is not a common sight and many people hide their laughs behind a hand. A couple other religions that were popular but are really mixed in with the culture are Buddhism and Shamanism (which is very ritualistic). The last queen of Joseon was assassinated around 1895, but she helped bring Shamanism into the culture of the time.

Some closing notes on our time in Korea involve good things to take away from this part of God’s creation! Many Koreans who live up by the North Korean border, and honestly anywhere else in South Korea, do not let the fear of man control their lives. They live each day like any other and don’t dwell on what could happen with the ongoing turmoil. I think we take this for granted living in a relatively safe country when it comes to comparing how close South Korea is to North Korea. And a second aspect of culture that I think we could work more on is respect for elders and grandparents. There are two ways to speak Korean, casually and with honorifics. It is very rude to speak to those who are older than you in a casual manner. Even though this stems from their worldly religions, and they even worship their ancestors, the common practice of having more day to day respect and honor for our relatives is biblical.

Our home will always house many aspects of Korea through art and mementos. Each piece or picture will remind us our friends overseas or fond memories of adventures that we can thank God for giving us the chance to experience.