Happy 5th Birthday, Maya!

Our granddaughter Maya Theresa just turned 5 years old! Happy Birthday, Maya! One of the most difficult challenges for Grandma and Grandpa here in Korea comes from our being half-way around the world on these special days when we would love to be together with our little ones. I don't think we could survive such a separation if we did not have the wonders of the internet and especially the opportunity to enjoy video calls through Skype. 

Sandy was delighted by a long talk with our daughter and the grand kids this morning. (It was early Thursday evening there in St. Louis). Maya was able to show and tell her grandma about the birthday bear she was built at the "Build-A-Bear" workshop. So, even though we can't be there in person, face-to-face, we can at least be present with one another face-to-face and voice-to-voice through the blessings of internet technology.

We wish and pray for you, our little princess Maya, all the happiness and blessings of God on this your fifth birthday!

The Gift of Mercy

My wife never ceases to amaze me.  She's been here on this new continent, in this new country, among a completely new and different culture for only one week, and yet she still has such a sensitivity to the needs of others as well as the personal initiative to get done what needs to get done, especially when it comes to helping another person -- whose name she doesn't even know -- obtain some measure of relief from physical pain.  Sandy demonstrated yet again --even here in this totally new environment -- that she has the gift of mercy.

It all took place Sunday morning.  We had been picked-up by Prof. Rhee who not only teaches in the Graduate School of Education at Handong but also serves as a teacher and leader for the Kids English Bible Study (KEBS) at Joyful Church in downtown Pohang.  I had been invited last semester to present the English Bible Story lessons at KEBS, and this semester the church leaders have asked both Sandy and me to serve as helpers and teachers for the kids on a regular basis.

Sunday was the KEBS orientation.  Over 75 children, ages 8 to 12, have been enrolled by their parents in the class.  The class is aimed at providing a double benefit -- instruction in God's Word, first and foremost, and also English language instruction.  Each of the teachers introduced himself or herself to the other members of the KEBS leadership team. 

There will be 16 teachers who will handle small groups of the children.  Sandy introduced herself briefly, but I followed-up and informed the leadership team that Sandy was not only an experienced Sunday School teacher, she was also a Physical Therapist Assistant and a nursing student as well as a former administrative assistant to the Provost of a university in the States.

One of the other Korean teachers introduced herself but apologized for not standing-up due to back pain that she was experiencing.  Following the introductions, Sandy went to this young lady and began to assess her pain and offer some help.  As Sandy was assisting her in walking up a flight of stairs, she realized that the young lady was in severe pain and needed to get home and lie down to rest.  The young lady, however, had driven herself to church.  She was now in no condition to drive due to the pain in her back.

Sandy came back down to the Sunday School room and asked Mr. Kim, one of the Korean men on the leadership team who spoke English quite well, to drive along with us while we took the young lady back to her apartment.  He drove his car so that Sandy and I would have a ride back to the church.  And who might you suspect was going to drive the young lady's car through the busy traffic of downtown Pohang on an early Sunday afternoon?  That would be me.  Sandy was in the back seat attending to the young lady in pain. 

Well, I managed to find my way to her apartment without running any red lights or missing any turns. (Actually, it was a pretty straight shot down one major street after I successfully navigated my way through the packed church parking lot).  The young lady lived with her parents in one of the typical high-rise Korean apartments.  I was even able to find an open parking place near the young lady's building.  Sandy walked her in and took her up to the apartment assuring that she was safely entrusted to the care of her parents.

Mr. Kim and I waited in the parking lot for Sandy's return and then he drove us back to Joyful Church where Sandy and I were treated to a lunch (continental European-style) of toast and cappuccino’s.  As I observed Sandy caring for this young lady in pain, I once again realized how naturally grace and mercy flow through her to serve the needs of others.  One with the gift of mercy serves whenever and wherever she senses the needs of others -- whether in St. Louis, Missouri among her children, grand children, friends and church family or in Pohang, Korea among people whose names she does not yet even know.

Commencement @ the Commencement of the New Year

This past Saturday, Handong Global University convened its 12th Commencement Exercises.  Throughout my teaching experience in the States, university commencement ceremonies were  traditionally held at the end of the academic year.  You would often hear speakers making the comment that though the ceremony occurred at the end of the academic year, it is called "Commencement" because it marks the beginning of a new stage in the life of each graduate.

The Asian tradition, however, places the graduation ceremony at the beginning of the academic year, and I think they get it right.  Not only does Commencement mark a new start for the many students who are graduating, it also signals a new beginning for the entire university community.  It was a joy to see several of my students, who I had had the privilege of teaching in the past fall term, step up to the platform as their names were announced.

Another excellent tradition is practiced by the faculty at Commencement here at Handong.  The graduates are called up to the dais according to their schools. For example, all of the graduates from the School of Management and Economics are called forward and their names are read.  Next, all the graduates from the School of Life Sciences are called forward.  Later, the graduates from the School of Law, where I teach, are also called forward. 

As each school's graduates are announced, the faculty from that school lines up across the platform. Groups of graduates step up in a line stretching across the dais with a student standing in front of each faculty member.  The student bows to the professor and the professor then takes the tassel that hangs from the student's mortar board and moves it from the right side to the left side thus marking, by this symbolic gesture, the student's passing to the graduated status.  The professor then congratulates the graduate with a hardy hand-shake and often, in this culture, a hug.

As the New Year here in Asia has recently been celebrated, it was a genuine pleasure to participate in Handong's 12th Commencement Ceremony at this the commencement of the new academic term!