Dedicated to My Students, Part One

Hakik Girls High School Life Series

"What are we supposed to do? I don't understand Mr. Soni at all!"

I want to take sometime to recognize some of the students at my school who give me joy and continue to work hard in my class. Just like my school experience last year, I met some incredible students who teach me as much stuff as much I teach them. With no further fluff of an intro, here are some of my ladies who I am proud to say "I teach these ladies:"

Hakik Girls High Uniforms: Spring on the Left, Winter on the Right

1. Kim Kyung-eun, Class 1-5: She's something else. Always positive yet playful, she always a good student to have because she has a drive, but she also has this edge about her. She is obedient to what I say but always likes to tease her teacher, me. A short, pumpkin-head of a Korean girl with a round, cute face and a very monotone, low voice which makes her sound like an android. When she speaks English, she sounds like a hesitant captain of a Federation vessel unable to choose her words, and sometimes it seems she is talking with her nose. Yet she speaks English well; she just needs more confidence. One of my favorite memories during class time was earlier this year. She, having a huge crush on me earlier this semester, turned out also to be a dangerous weapon. One Wednesday, before our class started, I walked out the classroom to get something from my office, at a brisk pace. Oblivious to all students as I rushed by, I returned back to the classroom to start class. After the usual remarks after the bell, I proceeded to pass out the class' materials to every single table.

Su-yeon, Kim Kyung-eun, and Hyo-jin

Kyung-eun ignores me as I urged her to pass out the papers. I kinda shove her a little, as she still played listless. "Kyung-eun, what's wrong!? What are you doing?" I asked her friends Li-ra and Hye-yun what's the deal. They said they didn't know. After a minute of trying to cajole her, Kyung-eun is resolved to ignore me. What did I do? I finished the class, with one of my best students mad at me for something. Typical Korean high school girl.

Spring Time at Hakik Girls High

Fast-forward to the end of the day. Its cleaning time, and girls are busily cleaning my English Zone while I review the day's progress. Enter this goofball. With one smooth stroke, she brings out this English dialog book, and reads, with her monotone voice (think a female robot from the 60's): "Soni, the reason I was upset today was you...ignoreeed...meeeee..." expressing her sentiments with some glum on her frown. Yet you could see the playfulness: "You didn't say hi to me in the hallway! Grrrr!" I apologize and told her I was busily running back to the office. "Hmph!" she replied as she walked away.

To this day, I never ignore her in the hallway, lest I feel the Wrath of Kyung-eun/Angry Korean School Girl, a "hi" must be given. By the way, she's still one of my fave and best students because she actually gives a hoot to what I have to say. Keep it up girl.

Having a laugh at Summer English Camp

2. Jung Byol, Class 1-1: Jung Byol is one of the handful of Korean students who does not have three syllables in her full name. "Jung" is her family name, "Byol" means "Star." She's the class captain of her homeroom. A small, little girl, her English is very advanced for a half-pint. She uses her voice to help me in class when her fellow students are too loud. What makes her unique is that she's a good team player, always willing to help me in class and does a great job of communicating. Its a pleasure to have her in my class, because she's very wise and mature for a girl her age.



Sometimes sporting a white cardigan over her school uniform, she resembles a mini-version of a grad student. Hence her nickname, "The Graduate." In class, when Mr. Kim or I cannot get the class quiet, she'll step in and yell at her friends to "be quiet" and her friends shut their mouths quick. She has been really helpful in my class and is quite intelligent for age. I believe she'll be a super-super star in years to come.

Mr. Soni and His Yeonsu Boys Re-Unite at the Festival!

3. Hwang Yu-na, Class 1-7: Yuna is this chubby, happy-go-lucky girl in class seven. She is also their class captain. Since day one, she has been ever so receptive of me and active during each class we have together. Any activity, no matter how menial or boring, she'll do it with gusto. Slightly taller than me, she has a round face, chubby cheeks, a small nose, and a very short hair-cut, so she resembles a cat. Everytime I see here, she's always greeting me with a smile and asking me, "What've been up to?" a phrase that I've taught since day one. What makes her special is that she is a Christian. She's told and shown me what God is doing in her life, including her recent mission trip to Cambodia, where she had the opportunity to help many people in that country.

Mr. Soni and Yu-na before her big performance.

The biggest gift she ever gave to her teacher, me, was a song. A love song at the school festival, which I will post in the near future. Its something worth seeing.

4. The "Hana" Girls and Da-hae, Class 1-1: These girls are always together. Always together, never apart. They are the "Class One Angels." What is more unique is their personalities, they are perfect complements of one another. First there is Lee Hana, a small but fiesty little girl who has a very narrow face and serious eyes; she is very friendly at the same time a "don't mess with me" kinda look is always on her face. Then there is her partner in crime Cho Hana, who has a more soft face, shiny eyes, a button nose, and is very laid-back. What's unique about the both of them is that they are the same height, so they could be sisters in many ways, as they trade barbs with one another. Finally, to round them out is their friend Da-hae. What makes her unique is that she is taller than the other two, so she would seem to be the ringleader. Yet she is the most shyest of the bunch and most bashful. In fact, she never spoke in my class. Then during our annual Speech Contest, up comes in Da-hae with this eloquent speech about plastic surgery! So I asked her why she never spoke up in class..."the other kids would make fun of me." Basically, her shyness combined with her good English skills made her a silent Sally for the entire first semester.

Yet everytime I see these girls together, they are all holding eachother's hands (perfectly okay in the SK), laughing together, telling each other stories and goofing off. Their friendship and sisterhood just make you smile...again, they are always together. In God's Realm, one of the most beautiful thing about life is our camraderie and friendship...God never wants us to be alone.

My girls do an ad for "DemiSoda," a lemon taste, fresh fo yo'mind!

So that's part one of my fave students. Some students I chose because they make me laugh. Some I chose because they are highly intelligent and insightful. And some I chose because they represent the sheer humanity of life.

Added throughout the blog are some class pictures past and present of students from my school.

"Gonna Carry It Home"

Tonight was a funny story, an end to a excursion. I just returned from a long, two-week business trip to Yeongjeong Island, which is the island where the Incheon International Airport is located. At the island I taught as a substitute teacher at the Incheon Foreign Language Training Center, teaching secondary English teachers and helping them refine their English skills, giving them teacher training for their return back to the Korean public schools program. It was a great break from teaching high schoolers; it gave me an opportunity to speak at a higher level while I was able to give more insightful knowledge to the topics we discussed. A give-give situation, I had a great time doing this program as a temp and the secondary teachers had positive vibe for the program so far (even though I taught for two weeks, their actual training runs for six months). We did various activities like book study (on George Orwell's Animal Farm), listening activities, writing essays, speaking and culture, and pronunciation practice. It was intense, most days I taught 7 classes!

I finished my last day today, and I was exhausted. This weekend is Chuseok, or Korean Thanksgiving, which I celebrated in full for the first time in my life last year. So, alot of the office staff at this training center left early to go travel to see their relatives in far off hometowns all throughout South Korea. The Korean staff, out of appreciation for the work we done, gave small gifts to us international teachers, such as wheat bread snacks, wrapped in a box and put into a small bag. Then, my homeroom class, out of wonderful appreciation for my brief stint as their teacher, gave me a brand new dress shirt to wear to school, wrapped in a small box and put into another small bag. Then, the President of the Training Center gave each international teacher a nice case of canned tuna, spam, and cooking oil. Put into a bigger box, and put into another bag, this one big.

I had so much stuff to carry home! I was already packed for a two-week trip, and upon departure for home my sports bag was filled to the brim so tight that if the thing was a living organism, it seemed like it would puke all of my clothes out! And I had three bags of goodies to carry home, as well as my small backpack. I'm shipping out for military camp? Maybe...

I had two options at this point. Mrs. Choi, one of the IFTC staff, allowed me the option of staying Friday night and travelling home Saturday morning, telling me to give my apartment key to the security officer on the way out. This would be a nice way to start my weekend, because the temporary apartment I stayed at was spacious, clean, and I had cable channels like CNN and BBC News, a rare treat for me. It was nice to stay on top of what's going on in the world.

Yet I had plans for tomorrow, to meet friends and then going to a relative's house tomorrow night in Seoul. A trip from the island, back to my apartment in Incheon, then going all the way back out to big, but empty Seoul would be a really straining trip. Especially with the fatigue I've accumulated all this week through overteaching, hot weather (especially for September), lack of sleep, mosquitoes, and an unusually warm apartment which caused my lack of sleep, a double trip would not be the best way to start my Chuseok weekend, a weekend dedicated to rest.

I figured at this point the better idea would be to gung-ho it all the way on Friday night, sleep in mad tomorrow morning, and be refreshed for a new weekend. So my co-worker Saleha (from sunny South Africa), and her husband Shabiri went back to my temp apartment, took out the stuff that she loaned me for those two weeks while cleaning out my fridge of excess food, cleaned up the place, while I packed up everything, including my new goodies, and we went to Incheon International Airport for a final dinner with them before I bid adieu.

I've hauled heavy stuff before...but this I thought I was going to be the mother of backbreakers and haulings. However, God assured me tonight that it was not going to be bad...just "carry it home, I'll be there." After an enlightening chat with my South African friends, who graciously accompanied me to my transferring station, it was time to depart and carry the load home.

From the island, I took the AREX (the Airport Subway Line) to the Incheon Line, and from the Incheon Line, then to the KORAIL Line One and back to my home station...Juan (pronounced "ju-an," not the Spanish "Juan"). Just one more stop and off onto the main streets. This whole trip back to Juan Station took about one hour. Cool thing that many people are on the road for their journeys home so I could find a seat for the long ride.

Getting through the ticket get at Juan Station was tough. I basically had to slide my stuff through the gate and under the turnstyle one-by-one while pressing my subway card onto the scanner with this mutant-formed sports bag on my shoulder, like a strange creature enveloping my arm. It was a funny looking scene and this one Korean guy was giving me eyeballs for it.

For some reason, the bags seemed heavier because I was sensing home more and more. I walked around the station's underground shopping center walking towards the goal...exit #4, the bags hurting my arms and leg. I turned a corner, and lo and behold, who was there? Several of my lady students, whom I've haven't seen in two weeks. They first didn't see me, as they were giggling, goofing off, and "eye-shopping." Then they turned a corner as I began walking on the other side.

They saw me, shocked and surprised, where they bellowed a "hi!" towards their MIA teacher. In one swift, brilliant motion, I immediately beckoned them towards me...and I made them carry my bags out the station! Whatever providence I found in the situation, I think God sent those students to help me. Compared to their American counterparts, Korean students are much more respectful and obedient, so I got one of my students, Mina, to carry my tuna/spam/oil case, while my other students Hye-yon and Dong-hee carried my other bags.

Unlike my Yeonsu guy students, whom I can fraternize with easier since we're guys, seeing my lady students outside of class is a much less frequent occurence, and a more careful venture. Even though not written, there is a less interaction code between genders in this country, so my girls, even though giggly to see me, were very shy to try their English around me, so I tried to speak to them in Korean to break the ice. Only Mina talked to me, and her friends were giving her stick for that one, "flirty, flirty!" they said in Korean. And the whole time they were carrying my stuff, they tended to follow me rather than walk with me, a sign of seniority, I guess. Goof-balls.

They helped me carry my bags out of the station, I hailed a taxi, and I went all the way home without much fuss, relieved... my students yelled "Bye Soni!" "I love you Soni!" (Yeah, they "love" me, how original!)

I was worried earlier about how I was going to haul those bags home, but God opens the doors like that, it was so cool. I recieved help from a platoon of my fem-bot students to help me carry the load, and it was good.

So remember next time, when you have a friend or family member who is carrying too much of a load in their life, whether it be stress, an exam, co-worker problems, family issues, life goal problems, or doubt, please be sure to help them carry it, so they too "can get out of the station." Just remember our Lord who meets us at the station and helps carry our load out to the exit...only if we ask.

"...for my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." (Jesus Christ in Matthew 11:30)