Grief is not pretty, no matter how you experience it. It’s also never the same between two people, but I believe it is generally agreed upon that it never really goes away. When someone first dies, in a way you are honored. You get special treatment. People tip-toe around you, and your bosses give you…
Tag: family
First Family Christmas Minus One
This year for Christmas I will be home with family. If you have been following my blog, you know that last year I was in Korea for Christmas. Technically, last year was the first Christmas without my dad, but it was also my first Christmas apart from my family, so it was an altogether…
The Prodigal Daughter Returns
It’s been just over three weeks since I have made my return to the U.S. and you might be wondering what I’ve been doing. Of course, I’ve been visiting friends and family and spending some quality time at home. Actually, one of the first things I tackled when I first returned was cleaning out my…
Vacationing in Japan
I was fortunate enough to be able to take 2 weeks off from work and travel with my aunt and uncle to Japan at the beginning of July. When my aunt was in high school, she became friend with a Japanese exchange student named Kaori. Fast forward 34 years, and they are still friends, which…
Traveling Korea as a Foreigner
So as you know from reading my posts through this journey, I have been living in Korea for the past 10 months. At the beginning of July, I headed to Busan on a Friday night to meet my aunt and uncle who traveled to visit me. We stayed on Haeundae Beach, which is a popular…
Happy Father’s Day to the Best Dad
This marks year 1 with many to come in celebrating Father’s Day without my dad. I spent this one in South Korea, staying busy with one of my friends. In a way, I think I had it easy for the first year without him. Being on the other side of the world, it’s all too…
새해 복 많이 받으세요 and Being Reunited
Happy Lunar New Year! During the first week of February, I had Monday through Wednesday off to celebrate the holiday, and with it brought my family! My mom, sister, and my brother-in-law’s sister made the long trek to see where I live and explore the culture. I left work on Friday evening and got on…
생일 축하합니다
생일 축하합니다 means happy birthday. On October 14th, I turned 23. If you didn’t know, Koreans measure age differently than Americans do. Because babies are in the womb for 10 months, they just round it up to a year, so when you are born, you are already considered to be a year old. When January…
A Week of Stranger Things
This past week was my first week of teaching at my academy. Overall, it was definitely a learning experience for me. I didn’t realize that it would be as hard as it is. I teach level 1 elementary school students and a specialty magazine course for upper elementary and middle school students. It’s harder to…
Weekends O’ Adventure
Cedar Point A few weekends ago, I had the fortune to be able to spend time with my sister and mutual friends for her bachelorette party. The day started early, but we were able to go to the park and ride the roller coasters before getting ready to hit the town. We played some games,…
Sam's Scenes & Soliloquies 