Hello everyone! First of all, thank you SO MUCH to everyone who wrote me with advice and suggestions in this time of unmarked crossroads and inconclusive transitions. I was so blessed by everyone’s interest, and so amazed at how much thought, wisdom, and experience you all put into your advice. I was most interested to discover that as I read each letter, I would be more and more convinced by the clear logic and wisdom of the suggestions, and then on the next letter I would just as convinced by the logic, except the advice was opposite! :-) But it was wonderful for me to get such wide-ranging ideas and thoughts. I’d like to share some of the highlights of these letters with you all:
-It's much easier for God to guide a body in motion than to overcome the inertia of a parked ass.
- I think the Visa situation is probably God/universe’s way of pushing you elsewhere.
- You say that Czech Republic is where your heart is, so explore your options there.
-Korea: maybe going into such a thing with low expectations and little idealization will leave you with more open eyes and a clearer view of things.
-If your heart is really set on Japan, then I wouldn’t give up on it too easily. Maybe God has closed the front door but has opened the back one.
- If you need money so you can finance your future plans, there’s nothing wrong with working for a few months [in Korea] primarily for financial reasons.
-perhaps there might be some short-term solutions you're overlooking in your eagerness to start something big?
- go have an adventure somewhere, even if it’s only a few months and you have to scrape financially. Otherwise probably soon like most people you will get caught up in some reason why you can’t leave where you are, and will never have the experience. The money will come later.
-By asking and praying for an outcome that we want we are not fully trusting God with his plan, even if we continue to say that we will follow whatever God is calling us too we still want something in particular (the ideal you speak of).
-I can see your quandary, but in one sense it's merely an embarrassment of riches. Think of all the people your age who are utterly without options, let alone such interesting ones.
-if...you go to a plan b, apply for JET next year.
-Korea would have a great Christian community that you could jump into. That would help social connections immensely!
-My philosophy has become, "just keep going until you absolutely can't". It's a hard way of life, but at the same time I feel so privileged. There are not many in this life who truly live by faith.
It’s empowering to know that I have such wise people interested in me, and such a support to know I will never have a lack of council! You can be sure that in the years to come I will present puzzles of my life to you again!
The real irony is that the end result, the answer to this crossroads, is something that no one, not even myself, suggested or imagined. Well, there was really no way to count on this happening! I waited until the end of April, and then decided that I would put the JET program behind me, and move on with other plans. Further information about my visa convinced me that I would need to move on, and I started researching Korean culture to see if I could be comfortable there, Chinese missions opportunities, other Japanese teaching jobs, meeting several Indians and Japanese I know in Prague to get more leads, and even going through the multi-step process of applying of jobs in Japan and Korea. In short, I was totally overwhelmed. Then, on Thursday night, I got an email from JET, that they had room for me on their list of selected teachers and would take me off the waiting list, if I was still interested. My world revolved again.
So, back to plan A!!! I’m going to Japan, and with JET!!! I can’t tell you how excited and relived I am. The last month has been so stressful going over all this again, and to be able to return to the choice that I’d originally selected is very freeing.
So now I’m scrambling to get my bearings and to create new “To Do” lists! Most of my frenzy comes from a renewed drive to study Japanese (this time with PRESSURE!!!), and to read as many books as possible before giving them away (I can’t take 100s books with me, now can I?! Sadly.).
So that’s my news, and I’ll keep you all informed. Once again thank you, I’ve felt very supported during this difficult time thanks to you all.
One last thing: some of you might remember the Extreme Travel documentary that I started in November. Well, it’s become a classic example of projects I’ve started and then gotten bogged down, taking forever to complete them. But, the documentary is finished! Completely! Wahooo! It’s long, too detail oriented and dragging, but it’s my first video project, so let’s call it a learning experience. For those of you who were watching before, you probably got through Day 2, so the place to start again would be the morning of Day 3, which is Part 24. So just go to www.YouTube.com and search for “Extravpenguin part 24.” Then you’re off again! Take it a few videos at a time, or you’ll get tired of my voice!! If you’re just interested in the photography of the trip, check out “Extravpenguin part 23/part 33/part 48/part 55.” Enjoy, and send me your comments, or write them on YouTube! I’m especially interested in critical comments on how to make documentation of my trips better in the future (besides making them shorter and more succinct. I know that already. :-)
Take care everyone! c:
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