Top 10 reasons why putting off doing my grades until the last minute is a bad idea...

10. staying up all night really isn't as fun as it used to be since i have to teach a class in the morning, rather than sleep through one like i did in college.

9. so many korean names to enter into the computer... after awhile, they all sound the same, and look the same... i swear, everyone's last name is either Lee, Kim, or Choi - how about some more variety?

8. so many little numbers to type into little tiny slots for over 150 hundred students - AH!!!

7. my eyes seem to glaze over and i start seeing things that aren't really there - or, do you see random whimsical objects on your computer screen too?

6. entering the attendance record for every person in every class, when most of them are repeating due to their grades, not attendance poses a question: is it neccessary to even do the attendance?

5. finger cramps

4. loss of circulation to my lower body due to sitting for an extended amount of time

3. instead of thinking about their overall class grade, mind wonders into fantasies of counting cute little sheep jumping delightfully over a fence...

2. sore back and neck from looking up and down from my grade sheet to the comp screen

1. sleeping is the best thing ever - deprived from sleep truly sucks.

**Disclaimer: due to lack of sleep, I cannot be held accountable for the things said in this blog.**

Dedicating Dong Seoul Institute

Saturday afternoon, my institute finally had its dedication ceremony. Yes, we've been open since November, but due to so many delays and much work that still needed to be done, it wasn't made "official" until now. The President and founder of SDA Language Institutes of Korea came to the ceremony, along with 200+ "big wigs" for the special ceremony. There were several speaches, etc. then my faculty and staff had to perform a special song for our guests. (It's a Korean tradition to sing/perform for special events) We then were presented and the President offered a special dedication prayer.

Finally, at the end of this 2 hour program, was the ribbon cutting ceremony. I, along with the other teachers and staff, were standing to the side watching the men line up for the ribbon cutting. When out of nowhere, right before everyone was about to cut, the President said, "wait, where is the Coordinator?" SO, unexpectedly, I took part in this special event. :o)

Now Dong Seoul is officially part of the SDA Language Institutes of Korea. I'm very proud of the hard work the Director, staff, and my teachers have done over the past 4 months, and hope that we continue to do so with God's help and guidance.

Dee Dee and I were the greeters for the event.
Her husband is my Director, Pastor Oh.
We're wearing Hanboks - Korean traditional dress

Presenting the faculty and staff of Dong Seoul

Crammed between the Big Wigs for the ribbon cutting. :o)
To the left of me, the President and founder
of SDA Language Institutes of Korea.
To the right, my Director, Pastor Oh

With teachers Stella, Monica, and Ellie
Enjoying some down time after saying
good bye to the 200+ guests

Winter Camp 2006

Last weekend was probably one of the highlight weekends I've had here in Korea. We attended the annual Winter Camp located in the beautiful snowy mountains. This camp is similar to the camp I attended last summer(Summer Camp 2005), but with the obvious difference of the time of year. These camps are designed to attract students who are interested in learning more about God and of course, want to get more experience with speaking English. Because this camp was located at a ski resort, there were limits for how many students could attend from each institute - some institutes had up to 60 students. Our institute is still in the beginning stages and we were more than happy to have 7 students join us for the camp.

The camp itself was for only 3 days - Friday & Saturday. Then on Sunday we all hit the slopes for some skiing/snowboarding. (I tried out snowboarding - it was hard work, but fun!) During the camp, we had 3 general meetings where we had invited a special speaker to address us as a whole. We then had a few small group meetings when we met with our own institute groups and have special bible studies. By Saturday night, we had a total of 89 students who were baptized. I'm happy to say that 2 from my institute were baptized - one of them is my level 2 student named Song. I was SO excited to see Song stand up and walk to the front of the auditorium during the alter call for baptism.

During my training when I first came to Korea, the President of SDA Language Institute came and spoke to us new teachers. His wish for us, was to one day see atleast one of our students come to Christ and to experience the power of God who uses us to reach our students. Song is the first of my students to be baptized, and I am humbled in the thought that God used me as His instrument in reaching this student. I was able to witness Song's growing interest in God and was able to see it through to baptism. What a wonderful testiment that God can use anyone for His greater good - even someone like me.

Mike is to the left, and my student Song is to the right.

Pastor Oh(my Director), me, Song, Mike, and Joseph
posing for a quick picture after their baptism.

I was part of the Praise and Worship team

who sang for every meeting. I had a blast!

Do I blend in well? :o)

Found some old friends from Kwangju

I was very spoiled to have boys tending to me! :o)
Sam here, is helping me get my snowboarding boots on,
and later, helps me to attach my board.
Was a lucky girl! :o)

Look out - Dong Seoul hits the slopes!