On the night before my birthday I sat down with a bottle of wine and sipped away, feeling increasingly more sorry for myself with each sip. Although I am loving my time here in Korea, I was feeling very far away from all of my family and friends back in Canada. Thinking of years past with celebrations including my close loved ones made me miss the comfort and familiarity of home. I went to sleep a few hours later in a very lonely state.
When I woke up the next morning, I was pleasantly greeted with birthday text messages, emails and facebook posts. I got myself ready because I had plans to meet some of my girlfriends at the beach for brunch. At around 10am, there was a surprise knock on my door. Standing there were my friends Amy, Dorrial, Amanda and Derya wearing party hats, holding a lit cake and singing Happy Birthday to me in the hallway. To say I was surprised would have been a huge understatement. As many of you know, I am a fairly emotional person (and sometimes those emotions come out as the opposite of what is expected) so, in the midst of this joyous gathering… of course I start crying. And yes, Dorrial got it all on tape!
My friends came in and I started off the morning with a cup of coffee and a slice of delicious blueberry cheesecake. I was thinking to myself how silly I was the night before… I am so blessed to have such a wonderful group of friends here in Korea… we really are like a small family.
After the cake and celebrations, we made our way down to the beach where we enjoyed a huge and very satisfying North American style brunch. It was the best of both worlds: food that doesn’t set you on fire while you eat it, and the wonderful view of Gwangan beach. We had some great conversations and enjoyed the morning together.
Soon after lunch I went into work. A few of my coworkers knew it was my birthday and congratulated me. Shortly after 4, I went over to the younger kids campus and a few of the kids said “Happy Birthday Laura teacher” which really surprised me… I was shocked that they knew. When I got to the main reception area, all of the lights were turned off and there were two big cakes with candles lit waiting for me. All of the kids and teachers burst into “happy birthday” and again, made me feel so special.
The day made me recognize how truly blessed I am… to be surrounded by people who go out of their way to make me feel special and valued. What great memories to look back on during future birthdays from now.
As I was teaching my classes, the kids made sure to give me High-fives and congratulatory comments… they were all really good too! All in all, a very rewarding day!
Later that evening, a few of us went out to Seomyeon to a German/Bavarian bar for some drinks. It was a great way to wind down from the day and have a few laughs. I went home later that night feeling great to be here in Korea, especially since I’m surrounded by so many awesome people!
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