Charpie's Travels

There are days in Korea when I wake up with one person heavily on my mind. The particular individual varies, but it's always someone from the states. I do whatever it is I need to do throughout the morning, but my mind is far from Korea. Today was Jelani's day.  It's been 11 months and a couple days. He never got to meet his baby boy. His little girl changed so much even before I moved to Seoul. It's been nearly a year, and somehow still no one seems to know what happened.  It's weird to think or say any of this, because in a way, that feels like a different lifetime. Even so, it's a lifetime that occupies much of my thoughts. 

I went down to the kimbap shop for lunch. For a little while, I had the place to myself. I picked a spot along the wall and tried to interpret more of the massive wall menu while I waited for my food.  For a few minutes today, I didn't feel half a world away from Minnesota. Sure, I was eating ramen and kimchi with chopsticks, but public radio was playing. After that was "Kiss From a Rose." When you're sitting with your back to the world, listening to Seal and National Public Radio, it's harder to remember that you're sitting in Asia.  And then I stood up to leave and discovered the restaurant was now full of blue-jacketed Korean men. I waited for the shop worker to finish rolling a kimbap, paid my 4,000 won, and mumbled "gam-sa-ham-ni-da" on my way out the door. Yep. I'm still in Korea. (And I love it.)

Mid-lecture, one of my fourth graders asked me, "Teacher, can you do eggs?" My expression effectively conveyed my lostness, and so she demonstrated.  Step One: Smile as big as you possibly can. Step Two: With your forefingers and thumbs, "pinch" as much of your cheeks as possible.  Step Three: Compare among your friends. The winner is the one with the biggest cheek "eggs."

At the bottom of his science homework, Robin wrote The End  and drew a box around it. And just in case I might still be unsure, he followed that up with the words "means it is over."

We've been discussing animals in kindergarten science. We're into really difficult things ... which animals walk or crawl or swim and what body parts they use for those movements. Like I said, very complex stuff.  I was flipping through photos of various animals and insects, and the kids were answering questions about them. When we got to the tarantula (or the "tarantura" as my kids say), I got a few anticipated screams from the girls. Peter looked at me completely straight-faced and began singing "Spider pig, spider pig does whatever a spider pig does...." I haven't seen the Simpsons in years, so Spider Pig was new to me. Even if I had known, Peter's rendition still would have been stellar. What's not to love about a 7-year old's monotone, Korean-accented, and rather serious take on "Spider Pig"? He made it through the entire song without cracking a smile. I was dying. 

There was a rash of kinder students walking around on the sides of their feet today. My student started it. She hobbled over to me yesterday and said in her raspy voice, "Teacher, I am broken leg." And how did I know that her left leg was her "broken" leg? Well, she wore a normal shoe on her right foot and her inside slipper on her left foot. She also worked up a decent limp by walking on the side of her left foot. Yesterday, Maro had one broken leg. Today, she grabbed my arm with both hands, quit standing so I was suddenly holding her weight, and informed me, "Teacher I am TWO broken legs!" She stuck with one normal shoe and one inside shoe, but now she walked on the outsides of both feet. On the way to bathroom break, I noticed Annabelle trying out the new walking technique. I spotted a couple others and, by lunchtime, some teachers were puzzling over why kindergarteners were walking on the sides of their feet. Way to inspire, Maro.

Between my house and the subway station, there is a small bakery. I stop there sometimes...mainly for mocha bread. When I went in a couple weekends ago, a new girl was working. "Helloooo!!" I rarely am greeted in English and, with the exception of a few pre-kinder kids, no one sounds that excited when they see me. She asked the usual questions about where I'm from, informed me that English is very hard, and picked out an extra pastry for me.  "Service-uh," she said as she stuffed it in my purse. That's Korean for "this one is free."  Sunday morning I stopped again for mocha bread and a coffee. Same worker, same enthusiastic greeting. Well, possibly more enthusiastic. She even remembered my name! I realize I don't exactly blend in here, but I still thought it impressive that she remembered my name. Among other things, she established that she is my "big sister." In Korea, you are friends with people who are the same age a...