I was in love with teaching. That was nothing new. I was in love with hiking the island. Also nothing new. This month the autumn colors were so beautiful; I couldn’t get over them. It was something we didn’t have in Sunny San Diego. Hiking showing me those colors and taking me by the beloved horses of the island was a great time. It also gave me a fun moment when introducing a young friend, Masha, to it and seeing how hooked she was from the start. An extra exciting event that I had never experience on that hike was eating seafood at a quaint little henyo restaurant-style hut right on the water. They were a rowdy friendly bunch of divers which was something I didn’t see very often. Usually when seeing henyo, I stayed at a distance while admiring since the impression I got was that they weren’t exactly excited to be bothered or about foreigners. Maybe wrong but I didn’t want to bother them none the less. During that hike we also came upon an old ship and saw some Jeju horses again. Yeah horses of Jeju! Little with big bellies and incredibly f,ast, they had been one of the reasons I moved to the island. Lord did I not know what I was going to get into with the animals there. Later on in the month, I also got to introduce Masha to animal rescue through a fundraiser I was a part of throwing. Also a great feeling to bring someone in to care about the same things I did. Having a new friend was fun. Especially one who looked up to me as what she called a mother figure (though I insisted I was more of a sister).
Random cultural norm: it was a trend for couples to dress alike. So cute.
Checking out new museums, parks and cafes was usually still a solo activity. But it turned out to be a more social month than I was used to in general. Usually getting my people tank filled through my students and volunteers, it was a special treat when I was invited to an evening hang with a group I knew through rescue, had dinner with my main rescue volunteer visiting Jeju from Seoul, lunch with Maggie and the Hash Red Dress Run. Typically a fundraiser, it was the biggest event for the hash for the entire year.
Keeping the fridge full at home was something that gave me comfort and security. So was going to Daiso. It was a budget store founded in Japan where I’m sure I made myself known as a teacher when going to shop there for stuff for the class. I also sometimes shopped for the rescue and was excited in this particular month to hit up for Christmas decorations. It was November, after all, and it was one of the only holidays celebrated in S Korea and the US.
The biggest challenge of the month was keeping my busted up face covered from when I ate it from a big fall when I was out parting. Hallelujah for having to wear masks at all times. Never thought I’d owe Covid one. The biggest win for the month was that fundraiser for rescue and animal welfare. A great time socially and rejuvenation in seeing that people cared through a sense of community. It also meant that I probably wouldn’t be bleeding quite so much of my own money for a bit. Starting to throw fundraiswers had been on my to do list for at least a couple months by then but I had been so overwhelmingly busy that it hadn’t happen. Hurray for teamwork!
Good month.
