It has already been a week since I came back to NYC and already those eight weeks are done. Before I begin, let’s catch up on one of my favorite memories from the last full week.

On Monday and Tuesday, we travelled to Gwang-ju, a soutwestern city in South Korea most known for its pro-democracy uprising in May 1980. We visited Soswaewon Garden and later visited the memorial for victims of the Gwang-ju uprising. They were citizens who risked their lives to protest for democracy, who were innocently targeted and killed under the command of Chun Do Hwan.

5.18 National Cemetery Entrance

Paying Respect to the Deceased at the Memorial for Gwang-ju victims.

On this trip, I expanded my comprehension of Korean language, culture, and history to ask myself questions about democracy, dictatorship, sacrifice, hardship, death and memory. While looking at graves in the memorial cemetery, I kept asking myself: “Who has the right to remember? As I walked around the memorial with the team I kept thinking about community, change, and love.

It surprisingly made me think of the late Nipsey Hussle, an inactive member of California’s Rollin’ 60s Crips gang turned Grammy nominated rapper, father, and entrepreneur. Aside from his untimely death, Nipsey turned his life around for the better and uplifted his community plagued by high crime rates. He was a poet that talked about entrepreneurship, love, an end to gun violence, family, and loyalty. How?

I began to question myself and my purpose. While contemplating my life and preparing for Duke Engage, I saw an old tweet from Nipsey that I have since come to live by- “The game is gonna test you, never fold. Stay ten toes down. It’s not on you, it’s in you. And what’s in you, they can’t take away.” And this quote ultimately became the soundtrack of my experience during Duke Engage South Korea.

And I found truth to this in my students at Jiguchon. My students are the smartest,  funniest, cutest, amazing, best cha cha sliders ever. Some of my jits speak Chinese, Thai (Forjune), Bengali, Vietnamese, Tagalog (Eunice) and Korean. Some, no many- love to play video games (all the boys in middle school and the GOAT- Changlim.) They love to talk our ears off during lunch. Calvin and Lisa LOVE to insinuate romantic linkings in my team while cajoling me to eat their Kimchi. Some of them love to pick their nose AND try to stick it on me- shout out to my baby 준위!Some  love to take piggy back rides and teach me Chinese  – go 미연! Some play Taekwondo and like to eat PB&J sandwiches (shoutout Robert). Some love Black Panther *WAKANDA PHOEVA (in Tony’s voice). Some of my kids fight each other. Some of my kids are easily injured (shoutout to 만세). Some of my kids love to sing and dance (shoutout to Annie, Sophia, and Martha). Some of my kids are silent and quiet. Some of my kids want to translate and love learning (나영, 지영, 소령). Some are loud and funny (Erin’s mini-her, Lisa). Some cry. Some laugh. Some smile. Some mean grill. Some give love effortlessly- shoutout to the noors of my eyes- Chris and Hyeon-seo.

Movie date with a student, Hyeon-seo.

But all of them are worth it.  Every single one.   So much heart and personality. All my kids are courageous. And I am so grateful  I’ve gotten to experience such amazing kids and even more blessed to have received love and given love to them. And  I hope they remember, life will test them, but they have to stand tall and firm. It isn’t on you, it’s in you. It will be so hard, but you can do it. And that’s that on that.

Final Day with Jiguchon Middle School

To the Kim 선생님들,

Thank you for entertaining my craziness, laughing and hugging me. For guiding us and teaching us. You have truly been a part of a remarkable summer of growth for me. I have learned so much about life and education from you guys. My bestie, 김헤영 선생님 and my soon to be agent manager, 김은영 선생님, make sure to turn the TV channel to watch me sing “Just Because” by Anita Baker(do you remember my singing on the bus from Gwang-ju to Seoul ㅋㅋㅋ)  on Korea’s Got Talent. 그다음에 뵙겠습니다.

Now to my team. Aigoo. The children, first, of course.

Martin:

Oh boy. I sometimes don’t know what to say to you.  What an eventful eight weeks it has been.

lesson planning and sending TJ hearts

TJ (who ya wit?-새우- I mean 재우):

 Will I ever not call you 새우?  And to that, I give a resounding “balls no” to.

En route to Ganghwa Island.

Big Papi:

Mi amor. 우리 막내. Stay golden and humorous. Trust yourself and don’t forget all the inappropriate advice I’ve ever given you.  Have an amazing sophomore year.

D:

Yktv. 7th of April- you know my venmo. Diamonds. *brings it in forever, fav*

Soswawon Garden.

Nikki da Boss:

My sweet baby girl. You and I are so bad for each other. We enable one another TOO much. Not much needs to be said. I’m down for you always. Can’t wait to show you my room while studying at Yonsei. Oh, and never will I forget your beautiful shoot.

Emily:

We are polar opposites in every sense of the word. But your tenacity and determination to get your med school apps done early is so BOSS. I wish you all the best.

Erin:

Idk girl. If anyone on this trip, I think you and I were like yin and yang. We balanced each other which definitely helped us not go fully crazy these past eight weeks. And of course, not all Koreans or Caribbean people are the same, but we are the same.

So how did a girl from the Bronx, a 6 foot something male math major from Pittsburgh, 4 southerners (a Georgian pub pol and Psych major, a Chapel Hill Pratt Star, a North Carolinian pre med Psych major, a South Carolinian pre med environmental science major), a kpop loving, applying to med school girl from the West Coast, and an Argentine-Korean soccer loving papi gracefully come together to teach English at a multicultural school in Seoul, South Korea while occasionally getting lost, accidentally dining and ditching (it got lost in translation), getting funky with it,and  laughing through it all? I don’t really know. But I don’t think it could  have played out any other way.

the alpha.

the omega.

 

 

 

A

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#tentoesdown.