Off to South Korea I go...

My plane is scheduled to leave Dallas, TX at 10:52am on Thursday September 21. I am scheduled to land in Seoul, South Korea at 9:30pm on Friday September 22. It's like a 3 hour flight to Minneapolis, then a 12 hour flight to Tokyo, and another 3 hour flight to Seoul. I'll be sleeping in the airport on Friday night while I wait for an American juggler who lives there to pick me up on Saturday morning.

I'm definitely a little nervous about the trip since I've only just learned to speak a few words of Korean yesterday from an online study guide. I'm also in a position to redefine my life for more than just one year which has caused some existential anxiety. I am going to sign a contract to teach English for one year, however, I could turn one into two or three and there are opportunities around the world to teach English. The most lucritive being South Korea and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. I'd like to go to the Kingdom. I have some friends from Katif.

The hard part about all of this is leaving behind my life in Corvallis, Oregon. I have seriously never missed anything as much as I miss Corvallis. I've only been away for one month.

So on one end I have Corvallis, the place I fell in love with almost immediately after arriving three years ago, and on the other end, the rest of the world, where I can see things I've never seen before or experienced. Clearly, I'm going to South Korea for one year. If it turns out to be bad, I can always go back to Corvallis, go to graduate school, and resume my lovely life there. If it turns out great, who knows what will happen. Maybe I get a chance to become that guy who goes to juggling festivals around the world. Maybe I organize the first Seoul Juggling Festival. Maybe... who knows.

Ultimately, my parting with Corvallis represents to me the first time I've ever moved away from a place and was in the middle of success. Quite literally, I've moved away from the best thing that's happened in my life. Previously, I've only just run away from my problems and crudy lifestyle. Corvallis, and all of my accomplishments, friendships, partnerships, community service, and work experience there, serve as a trophy for me. I can finally look at a period of time in my life that I actually did something, a lot of things, that were positive for myself and the community.

Quote of the Day

Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore. ~Andre Gide