The question you've all been asking: E.T.A.?

With my one-year mark in Korea quickly approaching, I've been receiving a lot of the same question: "When are you coming back to America?"

The answer to that question on its surface level is easy: I'll be Stateside from August 9th to the 18th.

The answer to the question that I'm pretty sure you're asking ("When are you moving back to the States?") is a little more complicated.  Let me try to explain.

Bahamas: My first international mission trip (2007)

When I was little, maybe in Kindergarten or first grade, some missionaries came to my church to speak about their work in Nigeria.  I knew then that I would be working outside of the U.S.  Never in my life has that underlying knowledge wavered.  This has nothing to do with a hatred or even a dislike for the United States.  I may say that I don't like living there, but that's not quite an accurate description of how I feel there.  I am definitely American by culture.  I am not fully American anymore, nor could I be the second I first stepped into another culture, but my overarching culture is American.  Here's the thing, living in the States makes me feel trapped.  When I'm there, there's this stress that's on me that most people only feel around finals or evaluation time.  I am not designed to be there, or at least not right now.  For that reason, it is not my current intention to return to the United States for any length of time.  I still may come back for schooling or do schooling online, I'm not sure; I'm just taking life one day at a time.

Let's face it, though.  I'm saying all this, but you must understand that everything could change tomorrow.  I go where G-d sends me.  If G-d sends me back to the U.S., that's where I'll be.  I'm just speaking from my current understanding of the plan, but I am human, and I am small, so my understanding could be incredibly flawed.

All of that is to say:
My evaluation went very well, and, barring some major change, I will be staying in Korea another year.  (And that thought brings a smile to my face. ^_^)

Some of my third graders and me, directly after my evaluation