no.91 130730 Thank you for the construction day

Our team is done for the day.
We've been building a house on a high, high hill. I don't know the name of the region, but it takes about half an hour from the Korean church where we're staying at. The more we drove up on the hill, the poorer the neighbourhood was.

It looked like a garbage dump. We met the family whom we are building the house for. The kids were playing on the ground with their broken toys beside glass bottles. I wish I canp show you a photo of what the house/ the neighbourhood looks like. But I gotta wait until I get home! I was so heart broken that I teared up when I saw how they were living. It is something that I've seen before on TV, but it was definitely different when I saw it in person. You really don't know what it's like until you see it with your eyes in front of you.

We have completed putting up the two walls on the sides, and we also managed to put up the roof on top. We started the facade and placed a window on it. We stared about 9AM and went on until 6PM. Thankfully it wasn't too sunny nor rainy, so the weather was perfect for a construction work. I'm thankful for today's work that God did through us, and I'm also thankful that no one got injured.

Please pray for us that we will complete the house for God's glory, and that God will grant us safety and physical health. I pray for the good weather as well. I also pray that through that one house, the family of the house as well as the neighbourhood will be open hearted in coming to know God. I pray that the house will be a blessing for the family and the neighbourhood.

no.90 130729 Thank you for the safe trip to Mexico

Here I am in Guadalajara, Mexico!!

We arrived safely but I am exhausted! I barely got any sleep on the plane, and even last night at church, I think I slept for an hour max. As soon as we got to the airport, two pastors that we'll be working with greeted us. We came straight to the Korean church where will be our home for the next 10 days. After a quick meal, we got our scrapers and started scraping off the paint off the exterior wall of the church. I think we started around 2:30is and we just finished about half an hour ago. I feel so good after a shower!!!!

We are off to another church for our next assignment in fifteen minutes!!
It's raining now. Please pray that the rain will go away tomorrow morning when we start construction work!

I'm thankful for a safe flight to Mexico. Although I'm exhausted, I pray that God will provide physical strength to our team so that we could carry out all the things we need to do on this mission trip!

no.89 130728 Thank you for today's message



From my sketch book. 511 Spadina

D-1!!!!!

 

I just finished packing. I hope I didn't forget anything. I'm really excited I couldn't fall asleep last night. I was extremely tired so I thought I was going to sleep like a baby but I was wrong.

 

I've been repeating myself that I can't believe I'm going to Mexico! I really wonder what it'll be like in Guadalajara. I wonder how I will feel once I get there and see how they live and meet the people of Mexico.

 

I just want to share something that I learned today through the message at church. Let me ask you - is your relationship with God more of a 'God-slave' relationship or a 'Father-son'? My pastor said to look at the way you call God when you pray. Do you start off your prayer by 'Dear God' or 'Dear Father'? I usually say 'Dear Heavenly Father' but I think I think of my relationship with God as more of a 'God-slave' relationship. I always ask Him things like: what can I do to glorify you? What can I do to please Him? etc, etc. 

Im thankful for today's message!! I want to have the 'Father-son' relationship more than 'Master-servant.'

no.88 130727 Thank you for a whole day of Mexico preparation

From yesterday's visit to Baldwin St. (or Ave?) for lunch

I had a really long day. I got home really late last night, and I had to get up early so I only got about four hours of sleep. So tiring... I had to be at church by quarter to 9am for our team's tools training for construction. It was very important information especially because it will be first time building a house in Mexico. So I tried my best to absorb everything that I learned but it was just beyond my brain capacity... pretty much everything was new to me. I'm trying to recall a few 'construction words' that I learned today. Ummmm... yeah... I know how to cut a dry wall, and drill into the metal beam things... I'm gonna need a lot of help!! I just don't want to make a mistake because its for people in Mexico. I want them to feel safe in their new home. I want to create a safe shelter for them, so there is no room for a single mistake!!!

 

After tools training, we moved on to our skits and praise practice. All of us agreed that we are pretty good with the praises but we are not as confident with the skits. We're probably going to practice more whenever we have the chance. Our team will be meeting at church tomorrow night, probably around this time tomorrow I'll be at church. Because our flight is so early in the morning on Monday (around 6AM), we'll all be staying over at church and leave together.

 

Although it seemed like a super long day, I'm thankful that we got everything done! It's D-2!!!! I'm still not done packing... I would take a photo of my room right now to show how messy it is, but I will be too embarrassed! I need to get back to packing but I might just leave it until tomorrow. It's not because I'm lazy! I'm just so sleepy and I need to finish something before going to bed. Good night!

no.87 130726 Thank you for a reunion

The "Mantourage" - I miss you guys:'(

It was an exciting day for me! I had a date with a friend of mine that I haven't seen for three years! She lives in Cali and she is here for a week visiting her Toronto friends. I'm so glad you came, my friend!

I met her exactly four years ago, when I went to Korea to teach English. She's probably the very first person I met. During orientation, two people had to share a room and that's how I met her. I walked into my assigned room, where I needed to stay for the next three weeks, I saw her luggage and hoped that she will be someone nice and that we would get along. Later that day I met her and I was happy for such an amazing roommate. We got along really well, and we soon found a group of friends. We called ourselves the 'Mantourage' haha. I forget who named it but it's really funny now I think about it. It was really fun hanging out with them. We would always meet in Seoul and hang out almost every weekend after starting teaching at our own schools. One thing I regret is that we didn't get to travel much. Back then, we thought Seoul was the best place to be... yeah.. we were young. Whether we got to travel or not, I cherish the time we spent together and these people are part of my fondest memories in Korea.

I'm so thankful that I got to see my friend again. I hope I can see her one more time before I leave on Monday. She seemed to like Toronto so much... wish I could trade places with her because I want to go to the States! I will visit you some time in the future!!

no.86 130725 Thank you for our last meeting before Mexico

It feels like autumn already...

This is it! Today was the last official group meeting before leaving for Mexico. It seems like we met up for the first time just yesterday but we just finished our last meeting and we are departing in a few days. The team will be meeting once more on Saturday to go over the tools, and off we go. I probably have mentioned one thing about Mexico missions in every entry that I posted this week. That shows how excited I am! It hasn't hit me yet that I'm leaving in a few days... perhaps when I'm at the airport, or when I'm on the plane, or it may not hit me until I land in Mexico.

I'm thankful for the past team meeting that we had. Every meeting had a progress and I feel that the team definitely bonded more compared to the first time we met. I pray that God will be with each one of us as we do our last preparation for the mission trip, and that we are deeply connected with God before we leave. I have some prayer requests. If you could support me and our team with prayers, it would mean a lot to us! I appreciate it!


Please pray for the team that:
1. God will be the focus of our mission trip and in everything we do
2. God will open the hearts of people in Mexico, so that they can accept Jesus as their Saviour and Lord
3. God's love will be known and shown to the people in Mexico through our actions and service
4. God will provide physical and spiritual health and safety of all the team members
5. Our team will go with humble, serving hearts, and love the people we meet in Mexico

Please pray for me that:
1. I will grow spiritually through this mission trip
2. God will open my eyes and my hearts to see and love the people in Mexico
3. I will depend on God than my own physical, mental and spiritual strength  (it's going to be physically draining because the trip is labour-intensive with house construction and VBS every day with the children, which will influence my mental and spiritual strength)

no.85 130724 Thank you for the nature walk

Sunset on the way home from my walk.

The Lord has done it this very day;

let us rejoice today and be glad.

Psalm 118:24

My dad and I went for a walk in this new trail/park that my dad found last week. He wanted to show me this place since early this week, but I didn't have time for him. I finally told my dad I wanted to go for a walk and he suggested that we go to the trail. Although I go for a walk almost everyday around the neighbourhood, it was a different feeling doing this nature walk. Surrounded by the trees, I felt healthier. It was more refreshing to inhale all that oxygen from the trees!

I'm thankful for the nature walk with my dad today. My dad really needs to exercise. I ask him every evening if he wants to go for a walk with me and he always says no. He thinks walking around the neighbourhood is boring. I should ask him to take me to the trail more often because that seems to be the only way to get him going!

no.84 130723 Thank you for my time in the playground

Hydrangea at the entrance of my condo.

Oh my, it's so cold right now! I am just returning from my daily walk and it's really chilly out there. My phone says it's 19 degrees, but it feels cooler than that.

I walked for half an hour, and the other half I spent it on the swing. When I passed by the playground, I saw a guy swinging back and forth, swinging really high. It looked like he was having the time of his life. After my walk, I saw the playground empty and I went for it. At first, I was feeling a little bit nauseous.. probably because I haven't been on the swing for the longest time. But then, I got used to it. I found myself having the time of my life as well. I thought to myself, it doesn't take much to make me happy. I was smiling for no reason. Maybe there was a reason, who knows.

I was listening to one song on repeat while I was swinging. In fact, I'm still listening to it as I write my blog. It's a Korean song but I still want to share it with you. It's by 2BiC and the song is called 'Return'. The song is about an old couple, and how the guy wants to 'return' to how they were when they first started dating. I don't like the lyrics as much, but I love the melody especially the chorus. I can't really describe why I'm obsessed with this song!

I am thankful for my time in the playground. Thank God I was safe! To be honest, I kept looking around to see if there was anyone who might do harm. Although there were passersby, thankfully no one did anything bad to me. In case you are wondering, when I was swinging, it was close to 10PM so it was pretty dark. Actually, there was one guy walking his dog towards the playground. When he saw me, he made a U-turn. Maybe I look intimidating... or he just thought I was weird because I'm swinging in the dark... alone. Oh well!

no.83 130722 Thank you for D-7 to my first mission trip

Thank you for today's beautiful sunset.

D-7!

Our team is leaving in 7 days! By this time in a week from today, I will be already in Mexico! Isn't that so exciting?!

I'm not sure why but I can't fall asleep these days. It could be the heat, or I'm just super excited for my first mission trip, or it could be a job-related stress, or could be just insomnia. Normally when I go to bed, I fall asleep within 15 minutes. Well, I just hope that the reason I can't sleep is because I'm too excited for Mexico.

Creating the list of things to pack was simple, but packing... not so much. I sort of started packing today, just gathering things together in a bag. I have a lot of T-shirts that I don't mind getting dirty but not enough pants. I hope I have enough! This week is the last week for everything before we depart. There is one more group meeting, although I think some of us will meet to practice the songs. On Saturday, we are learning how to use the tools for the construction work we'll be doing for the first three days upon arrival. Yikes! Am I ready? Most of all, am I prepared spiritually?

Hmm, I'm just wondering how I'll be able to work on my blog while I'm in Mexico. If I have wifi, I will try my best to at least post a photo and a short story. If not, then, I will write each day's entry on my journal and update everything when I get back.

People have been asking me what one thing I look forward to the most is. Hmm, I can't really pick one. I'm excited to build a house for the needy, to do a VBS with groups of kids, to lead children's worship, and other ways how God will work through our team in Mexico. Another thing that came to my mind yesterday when I went for a walk in the evening was looking at the night sky. I can't believe I forgot about this. I'm excited to see the night sky in Mexico. I will probably in a remote area, which means there won't be city lights to interfere my stargazing.

I'm thankful for D-7 to my first mission trip, ever! I will keep praying for my team and for the people in Mexico. Please pray for us! I will soon share the prayer requests.

no.82 130721 Thank you for a great fundraiser

A small gesture can be a big, unexpected surprise. Absolutely sweet. Thank you:)

I couldn't update my blog yesterday because I wasn't feeling well in the evening and I kind of fell asleep. When I woke up from my sleep, it was already past midnight! So, I apologize for skipping for the very first time. I hope to not make this happen again.

 

I had a fundraiser BBQ on Saturday for a few people (including myself) who needed financial support for the short term missions. The three of us arrived at a friend's place to prepare the food and get ready for the evening. In my Mexico team, we have a member who is an amazing cook, and he was the one who prepared everything for everybody. He made some gourmet home burgers with sun dried tomatoes, sauteed mushroom and onions in the special sauce, homemade chipotle mayo, bacon, topped with provolone cheese. Mmmm! It was delicious! I'm so sad I forgot to take a photo before I took a big bite.

 

People were so generous. I was worried that we may not break even with the money we spent on the food. However, I was definitely wrong. Thanks everyone for your support! I also received these cute cards from two people. It was unexpected, and that's why it made me so happy! I was so touched by their thoughtful gesture. I'm thankful for a great turnout. I'm thankful for everyone's support! Much appreciated!

 

Oh, and on a side note, thank God for answering my prayer. It was one of the fastest prayers that's been answered. I was really amazed by it. It's a personal story, but hopefully I can share it on my blog sometime in the future!

no.81 130720 Thank you for clearing the sky

Yesterday I thanked for the rain, and today I'm thanking for the clear sky. I wouldn't mind another rainy day, but just not today because I am throwing a fundraiser barbeque for our Mexico team.

I pray that the fundraising will go well today. I hope people will have a good meal, and that it can be a good time of fellowship.

no.80 130719 Thank you for the rain after humid week

Raindrops

This week has been the hottest week with the temperature going up to 34 degrees. If you include humidity, I bet it felt like 40 plus. It was ridiculously hot and I had to turn on the a/c even at night because I couldn't fall asleep.

 

After having no rain for the past week or more, God is pouring out rain in Toronto! It feels so refreshing and the temperature is finally cooling down. I'm thankful for the rain after the week of hot and humid July days.

 

D-10 until Mexico bound!

no.79 130718 Thank you for the progress our team has made

Pretty decorations

There is one more meeting and our team is leaving for Mexico. From now to the day we depart, we will meet a couple more times to practice the songs and get trained for the tools to build a house.

I'm really excited to lead children's songs! I just need to memorize the songs and remember the dance to it. Hopefully the kids will enjoy it as much as I do!

I'm thankful that we've made some progress today! The songs sounded great, and the skit was much better than last week. Keep up the good work team!! We'll be much better when we meet next week.

no.78 130717 Thank you for the memorable people

Happy birthday mom!

I think I'm dehydrated from yesterday. I've been drinking water all day and still I'm thirsty. Plus, I couldn't fall asleep last night and I kept waking up.

 

Since Monday, I keep pondering on one thing. I'm not sure how my friend and I got to this topic but we were talking about how some people leave a big impression on one's life and therefore, we think about them from time to time. On the other hand, there are also the people we don't think about.

 

Coming home that day, and even the day after, I kept thinking about the conversation. There are definitely some people I think about more than others. There are some people I want to find because we've lost contact. I guess it makes sense that these people that I think about are the people that I haven't seen for years. Amongst the people that I think about, there are people that I still talk to, and there are also a couple that I lost contact with.

 

One of the two people I want to find is someone from church in Korea. When I was maybe in grade 1 or 2, I met this unni who was probably in university or who already started working. My dad was in the choir and I always hung out with my dad during his practice after the service. I don't remember much, but I think I just sit there next to my dad for a bit. The unni sat near me and she played with me when my dad was busy singing his part. I think the last time I saw her was before she went to New York to study or work. I was in grade 3 or 4, and I remember writing letters to her and also receiving her card with lots of Sandylion stickers that I used to collect. She had the most fancy writing ever. I still have all the cards I received from her, although there are about a few.

 

I'm thankful for the people who have left a great impression on my life. I wonder what others will say about me. Am I that memorable person for someone? Or am I the person whom they want to delete from their memories? I hope to be a memorable person in one's life, and make a positive impact on people's lives.

no.77 130716 Thank you for a busy day

Love the book cover. At Anthropologie.

I had a full schedule today. I left home just before 11AM and got home at 11PM. I was in one area this whole time and it is extremely tiring. By the end of the day, my phone didn't have enough battery so I was a little worried since I had to talk to a few people regarding our fundraising for team Mexico.

I usually don't like to meet as many people as possible in one day. I like to spread my meetings apart so that I can spend enough time with each person that I'm with. That's just the way I like it. I don't want to rush the meeting because I have something else going on later. Today was an exception. We have a sort of emergency meeting tomorrow for our team so I had to rearrange my schedule a little. In the end, I didn't have to rush anything and things did work out.

I'm thankful for a busy day. I do enjoy being busy, especially this kind of busyness. I cherish the time I spend with my friends. I'm tired but I'm thankful!

no.76 130715 Thank you for my sunbae

Gam-ja-jeon or potato pancake. Ingredients: 100% potatoes.

Bold: adj. fearless and daring; courageous.

I had a lunch date with a friend of mine today. I've known her since my first year of university. She's my friend and also my sun-bae. Sun-bae means a senior at school. My friend was in her second year when I was a freshman. We both majored in art history but I first met her in a geography class.

I was taking geography as my elective. At first, I wasn't friends with her but I was introduced to her through our mutual friend. Ironically, that friend and I don't really talk anymore, but my sunbae and I remained good friends til this day.

If I were to choose one word to describe her, it would be 'bold'. People say I'm confident but I'm not sure if I am bold. You might be questioning "being bold and confident.. aren't they the same thing?" In my opinion, I think they are the same in general, but to me, boldness is a stronger word. To me, when you say someone is bold, I sounds like he or she is confident times two. I can't share everything with you but I can tell you that she is a bold woman, and I love that about her.

I'm thankful for my sunbae. I'm grateful to have someone like her in my life. She is a great friend, mentor and sunbae! Just want to share a quick message to her. Thanks for always listening to my stories and complains. Thanks for helping me to look to the bright side when I'm down. Thank you for the life and career advices! I'm often challenged with your stories from your experience. I'm so happy for your new adventure unni, and hopefully I'll be able to join you in the months to come!

no.75 130714 Thank you for keeping me safe

Walking and singing.

Another tiring day.

After falling asleep around 11PM last night, yet, I couldn't wake up this morning. My first alarm was at 7:30AM and I totally missed it. The second one at 7:45 went off, and I heard it but decided to ignore it. There was one at 8AM and then at 8:30AM, I finally opened my eyes and kept telling myself to get up. After struggling for some time, I got up and quickly got ready for church. My plan was to make some french toasts again for breakfast, but I ended up having a bowl of Fruit loops instead. I had to buy two boxes of Fruit loops for an activity for the kids in the preschool ministry, and I picked up one for myself as well. I usually try to get the healthy one (there's one that I always get and I like to throw in extra walnuts) but I couldn't find it at the local groceries anymore. I know it's got a lot of sugar in the Fruit loops but, once in a while is okay. Right?

There was another softball game and I really didn't want to go today. The weather was just too hot and humid, and I was feeling drained from the VBS yesterday. Since I can't play for next week, I decided to play today. I do enjoy playing because our team always wins! We tied once, but we have yet lost a single game. Soon it will be playoffs, and the best team will face the worst team. I'm pretty sure our team is number one in the league, so we will be facing the worst team! There are only one or two more games left before the playoffs. Then the season will be over. I think I'll miss playing softball with such great team members. Maybe I'll join it again next year, if I'm still in Toronto.

The heat and the humidity did influence me very much. Even though I constantly was drinking water, I was quickly dehydrated. By the end of the game, I was feeling sick. My stomach was feeling weird, so I wanted the game to end soon. After drinking some water and resting on the bench, I felt better. I got home and rested for a bit. I'm not sure why but I felt like walking in my neighbourhood and I went out again. Now it's 11PM, and my eyes are slowly shutting down and so is my brain.

I'm thankful that God has kept me safe and strong in this heat. Taking a walk made me feel better I think. I hope I can be fully charged when I get up tomorrow morning. Good night!

no.74 130713 Thank you for the VBS

God's gift for me today. What a beautiful sky!

Today was VBS for preschool kids at my church. Although it only lasted for five hours, I was exhausted by the end of the day. The theme was the 'Bread of Life Bakery.' I didn't have my phone with me so I didn't get to take any photos! The kids looked adorable in their little cheft hats and the glittery decorated apronts.

Myself included, some teachers met up at church last night to finish off the decorations for the VBS. I got there around 6:30PM, and when I got home, it was exactly midnight. If it wasn't for the hi-c kids' help, we wouldn't have finished by midnight. Thanks to everyone's help, the decorations looked amazing. We're so lucky to have such a talented group of teachers on our team!

My class had the youngest group of kids, born in 2010 and 2009! Yes, they are super young! They needed a lot of help, and I needed to run around everywhere trying to keep the children all together. It was definitely a challenge for me to put my focus on God when there were many visible things I needed to take care of, such as getting the children together.

Although I've attended many VBS long time ago, it was my first time serving. Growing up, I participated in numerous VBS as a young girl. I never thought of all the time and effort that the teachers put in to planning these programs until today. Our VBS was only for a day, but the ones I've gone to were overnight trips. Even it was just for a day, it was so tiring and it totally sucked all of my energy out. I now have a headache and my back is painful from leaning down to help the children with the activities, I am leading an activity tomorrow... so I'm going to try to sleep early tonight. Anyways, I learnt to appreciate everything my teachers did for me during the VBS when I was little. Thank you my teachers! I should take some time to write an email or even a short message to one Sunday school teacher I keep in touch with.

I'm thankful that everything went pretty well! I'm thankful for the safety of the children and the teachers. All the teachers were busy running around, trying to do their best with their classes and the activities that they were in charge of. Good job everyone! I also pray that everyone will get a good rest tonight, because we meet again tomorrow!

One more thing, thank you for the beautiful sky!
I can see the moon from my room, and the moon against the beautiful sunset in the background is so romantic! We shouldn't forget about these gifts from God! It maybe seem ordinary, but when you take some time to appreciate it, then you realize how blessed you are with everything God has provided for you.

no.73 130712 Thank you for the "princess breakfast"

French toast with maple syrup. This is the "princess breakfast"

My dad can be super nice when he is in a good mood. He was in a good mood in the morning. He bought a bottle of maple syrup yesterday, and I told him I wanted to have french toasts for breakfast. There was no bread at home, so my dad went to pick up some challah bread that I like from What a bagel. This bakery is close to my old place, therefore it takes about 15-20 minutes to drive.

If I were him, I would've ate something else instead of going through the hassle of driving to a bakery in the morning to get some bread. I'm thankful for what he did for me this morning. Thanks to my dad, we, or at least, I had a wonderful meal! When I brought the french toast out and placed in front of my dad he said it looks good. After halfway into the meal, he says to me "I don't like princess breakfasts. I want sausages." Yeah... I forgot that men don't appreciate the pretty visual presentation. As long as I cook something my dad likes, then that becomes the best meal. It doesn't matter how yummy or pretty it looks. Therefore, although I really enjoyed my breakfast, my dad didn't. He ended up making an egg and toasts. I will make some sausages for him next time.

no.72 130711 Thank you for the bright sunny day

My breakfast. No wonder I was getting fat these days.

I woke up happy this morning.

The first thing I see is the sky when I open my eyes in the morning. I think I shared it on my blog before, but I like to face the window when I sleep because I love waking up to the sunlight shining on my face. It's such a wonderful feeling (only when I have a good night's sleep)! Well, on the days when I need extra sleep, I block the window with my curtains.

Lately, I've been wondering why I was getting fat. I was able to find a reason today. Please refer to today's photo. I've eating this fatty meal for breakfast! On top of that, I ate four of the mini cheesecake tarts I made a couple of days ago. My excuse is that I have lots of fruits to garnish these sweet treats, and therefore they are relatively 'healthy' so I keep feeding myself all these fattening food.

I just got home from Mexico team meeting. We practiced the skit and the songs we'll be singing in Spanish. I want to share one song that we're practicing. I love this version in Spanish because it's got that groovy feel to it! It's called 'Hosanna' by Mark Gutierrez. There's a type of percussion instrument that I like the sound of it, but I don't know what it is. And I can't describe the sound it makes... I'll share it with you when I find out. But for now, please listen to this song! Hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

no.71 130710 Thank you for my girlfriends

My first time trying cold udon! Made by my wonderful friend!

I just got back home! I walked as fast as I can from the station because I am running out of time to write this post! I am coming back from my friend's house. The four of us had a lovely dinner, dessert prepared by moi and a fun time! It's my third time trying something she made, and I enjoyed all three dishes. I'm so lucky to have her as a friend because she's an amazing cook! I’m thankful for the girlfriends in my life. Tonight, I’m particularly thankful for the friends I met through volunteering. We’re planning something fun for the summer, a project of a sort, but I’ll update with the details once we actually make it happen. I’m looking forward to it girls!


I made some mini cheesecake tarts for desserts!

In preparation for Mexico, I got a shot today. I was so nervous to get that shot on my arm... but it wasn't that bad after all. I'm such a coward when it comes to things like this. Anyways, I got all the shots I need so I am ready for Mexico! There are of course, other things I still need to prepare but it’s getting there. Tomorrow is our forth meeting! I’m excited about all the prep we’ll be doing!

no.70 130709 Thank you for my grandpa's love

Eun-haeng-namu at the school I worked in Korea.

A couple of nights ago, my grandpa called from Korea. He was worried because of train explosion in Quebec and thought our area was affected by it too. He just heard that this happened in Canada and called me, not knowing which region the accident happened. I told him it was in Quebec, which takes about 7 plus hours to drive.

I'm not sure why this conversation came up, but it did when I was on the phone with my grandpa. He told me whenever he sees the 'eun-haeng-na-mu' he thinks about me. Eun-haeng-na-mu means a ginkgo tree in Korean. Eun-haeng-na-mu is my favourite tree in the fall when the leaves change colour. Ginkgos are easily spotted on the streets in Korea. I guess it means that he thinks about me very often. He said he particularly remenisces one occasion. I knew exactly what he was gonna say.

In front of the school I used to work, there was a huge ginko tree. In the fall, it was clothed in a beautiful golden yellow with its stinky seeds. Oh man, those seeds smell sooooo bad. Growing up in Korea, I remember my grandparents picking up the eun-haengs whenever we walked down the street in the fall. I didn't dare touch them because of their horrible smell. For those of you who are unfamiliar with ginkgo trees and their seeds, they look beautiful with the golden fan-shaped leaves. However, when you walk by one, suddenly you'll smell rotting feet. And that is the smell of the ginkgo seed or 'eung-haeng' in Korean. The top layer is the yellow juicy part, where the nasty smell originates from. When you take this part away, you will find a seed which is ivory/sand coloured. Once you crack it open by toasting it, you will find a jelly-like light green seed. This is the edible part. My grandpa says it doesn't smell once you get rid of the top layer, but I think the smell is still embedded in the green jelly part... so I don't eat it. My grandparents, especially my grandpa love them because of their health benefits.

Anyways, back to my story. That giant eun-haeng tree bore a lot of seeds and I thought if I brought them to my grandparents, they will be super happy. I talked to my mentor teacher if I could pick them up and she said normally the vice-president and other teachers do pick up the seeds every autumn. She told me to get one of the male teachers to shake the branches to get the seeds down. Although I wanted to gather the seeds, there was a fear of getting myself covered in that wonderful smell of ginkgo. You must wear gloves (I suggest you double, even triple the layer of gloves) before harvesting the eun-haeng. Thankfully, one teacher kindly picked up the seeds for me, and even peeled the first stinky layer off so that I could take them to my grandparents' house, which was two hours bus ride from my school. She gave me a bag full of eun-haengs. I was sooooo thankful for her kind gesture. If she hadn't done that for me, the smell would stink up the whole bus and I would be yelled at. I remember the day I was really excited to visit my grandparents' house thinking how happy they will be. It made me feel good seeing smiles on my grandparents' face. They too appreciated my co-teacher's help. When I spoke to my grandpa on the phone yesterday, he told me that the eun-haengs you find on the streets are not edible anymore due to the pollution.

I'm thankful for my grandpa's love for me. Although he doesn't express by saying 'I miss you' I know he misses me and thinks about me when I hear him talk about things we did together when I was in Korea. On days like this, I wish I was living in the same country as my grandparents. Tonight, I really miss my grandparents.

no.69 130708 Thank you for the power outage

I'm writing this post along with my no.70 post because of yesterday's power outage.

I'm not sure if everyone knew except for me, but I was totally off guard when the storm came yesterday. Thankfully, I was home when this happened. When I checked the news this morning, stations, houses, streets and buildings were flooded, and some cars were floating down the road.

Where I live, along with downtown Toronto and the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) were affected by the power outage yesterday. My neighbourhood was out of electricity since 6PM. It was already dark around that time because of the stormy weather. I was at home working on some things for the VBS. In need of light, I moved everything closer to the window. I had a couple of flash lights at home, but it was pretty dim. Then I got hungry, and realized I didn't have much to eat! My dad and I decided to leave the fridge door closed as long as possible to keep the cold air locked inside. I had some rice left in the rice maker. There was just enough for both of us. By the time when I opened it, it wasn't warm, but my dad and I found it so good with seasoned seaweed ('gim'). And that was our dinner; rice and gim. Simple and delicious.

After dinner, it was around 9PM? Without electricity, there was absolutely nothing to do. My laptop is super old therefore it has to be plugged in if I want to use it. My phone didn't have much battery, so I wanted to save it for emergency just in case. My ipod didn't have much battery left either, but I decided to listen to the radio it to see if I could hear any news related to the power outage. I kept switching between stations, but all I heard were songs after songs. I couldn't understand why not a single station was broadcasting live news. The more I switched between stations, the less the battery life. Finally, the colour of the battery sign turned red. I was anxious to get some news because the radio was my only hope to connect with the outside world!

Literally just before my ipod went off, the DJ said that the Toronto hydro team are working to get the power back by midnight. That's all I wanted and needed to hear. That was around 10:30PM. Not knowing what to do, I decided to force myself to sleep. Then my dad said he will tell me stories.

Is it ironic that I'm thankful for the power outage? If it wasn't for the storm, I would forever take electricity for granted. Not only that, I actually had fun without any electricity. Don't get me wrong, I'm so thankful that the power is back on. I guess, the whole situation I was in seemed funny to me. I mean, we're living in the 21st century, and yet we didn't have power for more than 5 hours. I find this a bit ridiculous that it took the hydro people this long to fix this problem. Then again, as I write my blog, the kind of the world we live in has shaped the way we think. We live in the fast pace world, where we want things done in instant. For instance, that's why we have smart phones.We couldn't wait to go home to check our emails and facebook pictures our friends tag you, people had to create something that is portable and instant. I'm not saying these inventions are bad. What I'm trying to say is that this device called a 'smart phone' is making people dumb. People are addicted to their smart phone. Not just that, we are enslaved by them. We think less because of the smart phone. We depend on it so much that our whole life is depended on this little thing. Our relationships, schedule, memories, work, everything is in that one device.

no.68 130707 Thank you for the light rain

A very random pic: a white gerbera daisy!

Every Sunday, there is a soft ball game after the service. Well, there is a league at my church for the summer and it's been on since June. It's my first time joining the league and I am having a lot of fun!
I'm not good at it, but I'm actually doing better than I thought. At first, I was worried that I might not even able to hit a ball with the bat. The very first game I played, I had a strike out. But afterwards, I did a pretty good job hitting the ball. The running part is still a challenge for me. To be honest, it will always be a challenge because I just suck at running!

Back in elementary school, I used to hate track and field days. I hate running, and I suck at it. Actually, I suck at all kinds of sports, mainly because of running. I'm just sooooo slow at running.. I can't help it. During soft ball, I'm having a dilemma lately because I can hit but I can't run. No matter how hard I try to get to the first base, I see the person (I don't know what to call a person who's on the first base) catch the ball before I get there. Yeah... so sad.

Anyways, I kind of hope that it will rain so that I could miss soft ball since I didn't feel like playing today. It was raining in the morning, and there was a chance of rain in the afternoon as well. On the way to the field, it started to drizzle a bit, but the game wasn't cancelled.

I'm thankful for the light rain. I would've hated it if it was pouring while the game was on. I probably would've complained more (I didn't feel like playing, and not it's raining, and I'm all wet, etc etc). And guess what, our team won (as usual)! Although I didn't play that well, I'm glad we won!

no.67 130706 Thank you for the VBS

The theme of VBS for our children this year is 'Bread of Life Bakery'

In a week from today, there is a vacation Bible school (VBS) at my church. Although I have heard of the term 'VBS' before, I didn't fully understand the meaning of the term and what it's about until recently. How can I not know what VBS is when I've been going to church all my life? It's because I only know the Korean term for it.

It's because I spent my childhood in Korea. VBS is for kids from kindergarten up to grade 6, and I went to school in Korea until grade 5. Anyways, I am serving as a teacher in the preschool department at my church. It's my first time doing a VBS and I'm very excited! The theme is 'Bread of Life Bakery'. I am in charge of crafts so I went to pick up some materials today.

I had fun picking out items for the children. Thinking about what they'd like, what they'd use... it made me happy! I'm thankful for this opportunity to serve as a teacher at the preschool ministry and be a part of this year's VBS. As I prepare for this event, I am recalling a lot of memories from when I attended VBS many many years ago. No I don't have any memory of myself going to VBS when I was a kindergartener. I was too young to remember anything. However, I have memories of doing various activities when I was in elementary school. My church in Korea was pretty big, and the church built some sort of community centre somewhere in the suburbs. I remember going there one summer for our VBS. I don't remember what I learned from there except for all the fun games and memorable activities we did. And of course, my favourite part - swimming. We went for 2 nights and 3 days because we were a bit older. The children in the ministry are between 3-5, so they are a lot younger. Some younger children have a hard time separating from their parents, although it's less than 2 hours on Sundays. Definitely no overnight trip for us!

I pray that our preparation will go well, and the children will have lots of fun learning about God through the VBS. 

no.66 130705 Thank you for the quiet time

Ice cream we got when my friends and I went on a short trip over the long weekend.

There are days when I really want to have a quiet time with God. On some days, I know I have to spend a quality time with Him, but I just 'don't feel like doing it'. There are also other days I just forget or don't have time in the morning to do it.

I was between the second and the third today. When I got up, I almost forgot about doing my daily devotion and rushed to make breakfast since I woke up hungry. After my breakfast, the thought of doing my quiet time came to my mind. I was hesitant for a bit but I kind of forced myself. Then through it, I received a perfect message. The focus of the message was about setting priorities daily. This is something I know very well in my head. Although I know how important it is to start the day with God, why is it so hard to be consistent with the daily devotions?

I'm thankful for the message I got through today's quiet time. To be honest, it's a little embarrassing to say that I did my quiet time today because I only read it once. It was a short passage and I literally read from the beginning to end and that was the end of my devo. My pastor recommends that I spend at least 20 - 30 minutes for quiet time. I should read the verse over and over, trying to absorb God's message that He has prepared for me today. Also, I think it's important that I enjoy this time. Sometimes I think of quiet time as a burden. When I don't start my day with God's message, I feel guilty as well. I pray that there will be joy in my heart in seeking to spend this intimate quality time with God. I pray that quiet time will be something I look forward to when I get up in the morning.

no.65 130704 Thank you for the team Mexico meeting

A delicious BBQ dinner provided by one of our team member!

We are half way into our meeting for Mexico. So far we had three meetings, and we have three more to go before our departure. We have made a progress today as we have made decisions on certain things such as which skits we're going to perform. All there is left to do is practice, practice and practice!

I'm thankful for today's meeting. I'm glad that the meetings are going well, and it's nice to see that things are starting to come together. We have little bit more than three weeks left before we take off. I've been counting down so I should know that we don't have much time left. But it just seems like we have a lot of time left. I really need to get back to studying Spanish, and also working out my arms because we'll be doing some construction work. I want to be prepared! Well, at least give it a try. I know I won't feel completely ready, but I hope to be equipped in the areas I can be. However, I shouldn't forget the focus of the missions. As we have read last week in an article called "Let the nations be glad" by John Piper, the goal and the fuel of missions is worship:

“Missions is not the ultimate goal of the Church. Worship is. Missions exists because worship doesn’t. Worship is ultimate, not missions, because God is ultimate, not man. When this age is over, and the countless millions of the redeemed fall on their faces before the throne of God, missions will be no more. It is a temporary necessity. But worship abides forever.

Worship, therefore, is the fuel and goal of missions. It’s the goal of missions because in missions we simply aim to bring the nations into the white hot enjoyment of God’s glory. The goal of missions is the gladness of the peoples in the greatness of God. “The Lord reigns; let the earth rejoice; let the many coastlands be glad!” (Ps 97:1). “Let the peoples praise thee, O God; let all the peoples praise thee! Let the nations be glad and sing for joy!” (Ps 67:3-4).

But worship is also the fuel of missions. Passion for God in worship precedes the offer of God in preaching. You can’t commend what you don’t cherish. Missionaries will never call out, “Let the nations be glad!” who cannot say from the heart, “I rejoice in the Lord…I will be glad and exult in thee, I will sing praise to thy name, O Most High” (Ps 104:34, 9:2). Missions begins and ends in worship.”

no.64 130703 Thank you for the matcha roll cake

I made a mini version of match roll cake with whipped cream.

Every night, I become Cinderella. If I know that there is a possibility of coming home late, I work on the blog before going out. My alarm goes off at 10PM everyday as a reminder. I need to complete it before the clock strikes midnight. I usually work on it in bed after the alarm. Sometimes feeling pressured to finish it on time.

I feel like the majority of the posts I put up lately is about food... which makes sense, because I've been doing a lot of cooking and baking, more than ever while my sister was back home. Half of me wanted to make delicious meals for her, and the other half just felt responsible to fill my mom's shoes. That's why I stepped out of my comfort zone, and challenged myself by making kimchi, LA galbi and this fish dish that I didn't share about. Although my sister went back last week, I'm still motivated to cook and bake. Today, I baked a Swiss roll cake for the first time. As you can see in the picture, it turned out pretty nice.

I'm thankful for the matcha roll cake! I guess it makes more sense to thank for green tea powder. I'm actually addicted to matcha desserts such as green tea latte, green tea ice cream, grean tea chocolate, green tea mochi, green tea macaron, green tea cake... you name it. There were times when I used to drink green tea latte three times a day. Yeah.. I was crazy but I'm much better now.

I want to share a verse today that I got from my daily Bible verse app. I don't worry because God knows what's best for me, and He already is directing me in the way I should go.

This is what the Lord says - your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel:

"I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is best for you,

who directs you in the way you should go"

(Isaiah 48:17)

no.63 130702 Thank you for the kimchi I made

My first yeolmu kimchi was a success!

I made my first kimchi. You might recall that last week, I attempted to make yeolmu kimchi for the first time in my life. When I tasted it last week, the taste was questionable. It was spicy from all the red pepper and garlic I put in, and it definitely needed more salt. I put a lot of effort in it so I was hoping for a good result. So it left me in a big disappointment when the kimchi didn't taste right. I kept encouraging myself that it was a good try and I'll make it better next time. After fermenting, I stored the kimchi in the fridge and didn't bother taking it out to try it again until yesterday.

 

I opened the kimchi container, picked up one yeolmu with my hand and tried it. Surprise, surprise. I couldn't believe what it tasted like so I tried another one. Still unable to believe it, I got my dad to try as well. It actually tasted okay! I got super excited, I wanted to stop making the instant noodle that I was cooking, but it was too late as I have already placed the noodles in the boiling water (I had just gotten home and didn't feel like eating anything else). My dad said he will eat the noodles so I started making yeolmu bibimbap, which you can see in yesterday's post. My dad and I ended up sharing both the noodles and the bibimbap.

 

I'm thankful for the kimchi I made. I'm glad it turned out well and it's actually edible! Thanks mom for the recipe and calling me late at night to give me the instructions. As I was eating kimchi today, I thought of one question - would I have learned to make kimchi at my age if I was living in Korea? Probably not because I would be eating the kimchi made by my mom or my grandmas. In that case, I probably wouldn't know how to cook at all. Well, unless I'm married or living on my own. But even so, I have many people who can make kimchi for me - I wouldn't bother making kimchi at home.

 

I'm going to try to start working on 'In my kitchen' section of my blog in the weeks to follow. I haven't decided on what recipe to share yet. It might be this yeolmu kimchi or could be something else. 

no.62 130701 Thank you for the memorable trip

For dinner, I made yeolmu bibimbop with the yeolmu kimchi I made last week.

Happy Canada day!

I see many fireworks bursting into the night sky from my window.

 

I got back from my trip about an hour ago. I quickly took a shower and had dinner. I am slowly falling asleep so I'm working on my blog in bed. I didn't get that much sleep last night because everyone went to bed late after the fireworks, games and the bonfire. After, I was talking to a friend for a bit, and then I just couldn't fall asleep. The last time I checked my phone before going to bed was past 4AM... I was probably the last person to sleep. I woke up in the middle of the night and I got up relatively early. I hate being so sensitive!

 

Other than my lack of sleep, this trip will be probably one of the most memorable trips yet, because of one particular event. I was able to celebrate friends' engagement right after it happened. I'm really happy for them!

 

I'm thankful for the memorable trip. I'm also thankful that everyone had fun, no one got hurt, and all of us returned home safe and sound. And I'm going to pass out in 5..4..3..