my own little eat, pray, love.

So, in case you haven't heard, in less than two weeks I'll be going to Korea!!! Now, before you all start pummeling me with endless questions, let me just sum of half of the conversations I've had in the last few months. I guarantee you others have had the same questions as you.

FAQ's

Q: North Korea or South?

A: Ummm… What do you think? Definitely South Korea. (Seriously though. Let's ask smart questions from now on…)

Q: What are you doing there?

A: I'll be there teaching English for a year.

Q: How long will you be there for?

A: (Did you not just hear me?) I'll be there for a year.

Q: Will you be in Seoul? Do you know where you'll be?

A: I don't know where exactly I'll be. All they've told me is that I've been placed in the Gyongbuk Province.

Q: How can you not know where you'll be?

A: They haven't told me? At the end of orientation they'll tell me that and what age I'm teaching.

Q: They haven't told you what age either?
A: (I swear I just said this, haha.) Nope. But it will most likely be elementary-age students.

Q: How do you plan lessons and things without knowing?
A: I don't… yet. I will receive training when I'm first out there on how to plan lessons and handle a classroom, though I've done some classes and training online already. I'm not too worried about it. The curriculum and textbooks are different from school to school anyways, so there's no point in really planning until I'm out there.

Q: … … … (They need a minute to process things to see if I'm really serious about all of this or not.)

A: I'm actually really excited!!

This is where the older people generally say something along the lines of:
Q: Do you plan on getting married ever? (This is where I still keep a smile on my face but deep down I'm reeeaaallly tired of answering this question.)

A: I would like to, yes! But I've been in Utah County for almost eight years, being graduated from college for almost three of those. Zero marriage proposals, haha. And actually, hardly interests I had actually morphed into something that would work in a healthy way. In all honesty, I was feeling claustrophobic where I was, every day I went by feeling like I needed a challenge. I needed to get out of the rut I was in. (Actually, it was a bubble, not a rut. Provo is a bubble. A literal bubble.) This opportunity to teach in South Korea came when I felt I had hit rock bottom. I see this as an opportunity to help shape me into the person I want to become, which will help me attract the kind of person I want to marry. Believe me, I get it: Not many 25-year-old Mormon girls are still single. He'll come around when he's supposed to, but I'm not going to sit around and wait for him. And I'm okay with the direction I'm going with my life. I think that's most important right now.

I'll just leave that right there…

Continuing with questions!

Q: So… Why… Korea?? (Accompanied with the "you must be crazy" face. The cherry on top, really…)

A: There are a lot of reasons, actually. I literally just Googled "English teaching jobs abroad" one day and the first thing that popped up was a link to Greenheart Travel I found other sites that said similar information that I found on Greenheart's website. The position most talked about was with the English Program in Korea (EPIK). The main appeal that this opportunity had to me was that it was a paid position!! I've always been far too stingy to just drop my job and spend all my savings for a few months of volunteer work in another country. Call me what you will, but I just couldn't bring myself to do that. On top of this being a paid position, they were reimbursing my flights, providing me with housing in Korea and even helping pay for part of my health insurance costs. Any concerns I had as far as excessive cost were taken care of. I felt I could have this opportunity and not lose everything that I had been working for personally. There's also the fact that I've never wanted to be considered a "visitor" or a "tourist" in any country that I traveled to. I want to learn from them. The fact that I'll be out there for a year gives me plenty of opportunity to truly love and be loved by the people of South Korea. I could literally not think of any reason to not try for this position!!

**If I'm fully honest, there's an added bonus of going to South Korea: There's this magical thing called "k-pop" that I came across one day. It's like a freakin' happy pill!! Seriously, it's like they're stuck in the 90's and it’s the best. thing. ever!! Boy bands galore. Turn on k-pop, I can't stop dancing. (If you think I'm joking, ask my friends from the Viv.) Because of k-pop, I was already a little familiar with the country (just scraping the surface, really, but enough for me to be okay with considering going there). K-pop is a big thing over there, and I'll undoubtedly join in the crowds fangirls (and fanboys! haha) if I ever see a K-pop Idol walk by.

Q: Are you going with a friend? Do you know anyone out there?

A: Nope. Not a soul.

Here's my favorite follow-up question to that one (though only asked once):

Q: HAVE YOU SEEN THE MOVIE TAKEN??!!

A: Yes. Yes, I have. That doesn't change my decision to go though. There's this thing called common sense and I happen to have that. So I think I'll be juuuuust fine. Thanks for your concern though. :)

Q: So you're really excited then?

A: YES! How could I not be??! I've been working toward this for months now and I finally got it! It was not Plan A in my life or even Plan G, but I finally found something that worked for me. Plan H! PLAN HUZZZAH! I call that a success. Although… I'll be honest. I'm not entirely sure what I've gotten myself into, haha. I've never traveled before (I had to get a passport just for my application months ago) and I don't speak Korean. Like, at all. BUT. I'm not worried. Everything will work out. Not sure how! But it will.

Q: So you're not scared then?
A: Not in the sense that you're asking. I'm going over there with zero expectations except to make the best of whatever comes my way. I'm not going out there to just have fun. This will be a job. Monday through Friday, I'll be working 8hrs a day. I'll have vacation days, but I don't even know when!! I have things I want to do while over there, yes, but I'm just grateful for this opportunity. I've fought for months for this and I know this will be a great experience for me. I need this.

Q: When do you leave?

A: I fly out on the 17th. 

LESS THAN TWO WEEKS, PEOPLE.

Twelve days left in the US. This is real. This is crazy town. And I can't wait. 

#KMintheSK