Things to be thankful for

I have happy news, everyone! I just found out in my most recent fundraising report that I have reached my goal of $9,000! I want all of you back home to know that I am so grateful for your loving support -- both emotional and financial. None of this experience would be possible without my generous church family, and I can't wait to meet you all again and share my year with you.

And speaking of giving thanks . . . I recently celebrated my first Thanksgiving away from home! The three of us YAVs were busy working on Thursday at our respective centers, but we made sure to make time on Friday. Then in the evening, we hosted a dinner and invited the other Americans we knew: Mike and Sue (who are guest professors at Hannam) and Kristin and her family (who live on the military base nearby). We had to be creative with our food preparation, since many traditional Thanksgiving foods aren't readily available here. But everyone worked hard to make it special, and altogether we had more delicious food than we could eat! For example, we had no turkey (you don't see those much in Korea), so Kristin provided fried chicken and bulgogi (grilled meat) instead. We had green beans and carrots as well, mashed potatoes, and a sweet potato casserole. I did fried mandu (dumplings) as an appetizer. And for dessert, our resourceful guests managed to rustle up a couple of pies (although the whipped cream was a little harder to come by)! All in all, it was a great evening of food and fellowship.

Coming soon: an update on my work at the children's center. Stay tuned!