Empowering Questions #1

As a preface, I'll start by saying that it is New Year's Day.  I'm sitting in my living room in Suseong-gu, Daegu, South Korea.  I noticed a small box on the lower level of my living room coffee table and remembered that I had PURPOSELY brought that small box with me from the United States when I moved here, in hopes that I would start using it to grow as a person.  So, I saw the box, remembered it was New Year's Day, and decided to start using it.  Hopefully, this particular blog series will become one I do often, (so as to implement the growth thingie, yeah?)

So, the box is filled with cards and writing prompts (of a sort--maybe more of 'thinking' prompts.)   EMPOWERING QUESTIONS are the words on the top of the box.  So, here we go, y'all.  Let's get 'empowered.'

The first card says: 

What kinds of good and beautiful things am I experiencing in this moment?

I like this question because it begs me to have a grateful mindset.  I (very) often forget to have a grateful mindset, so this is helpful to me.  Let's go!

I'm grateful that I am able to recognize my growth in skills as a teacher.  I'm not an AWESOME teacher yet, but I'm finding resources and developing skills which will help me grow into one and I find beauty in understanding that fact.  

I'm grateful for the moments where I see growth in my students! It is so amazing a thing to behold!  Yesterday, Yeon Su remembered how to read 'others' and 'always' and a variety of other words in 'The Cat in the Hat' without any guidance from me.  And--even better--is HIS pride in knowing that he has learned to read yet another word.    

I'm grateful for my weird ability to find beauty EVERYWHERE!  Really--in the most ridiculous places.  For example, in the contrasting colors of bricks in the facade of a building.  In the differences between the sky and the bare-leafed, white-barked trees that line nearly every big road.  

I'm grateful for the moments when I realize that I'm learning some Korean words without realizing I've learned them. The recognizition gives me such a beautiful and hopeful feeling!

I'm grateful for the few connections and friendships I've formed here. Eun Hee, Tae Hyun, Max, Jessica, Emily, Marianne, Danny, Sue, and Haneul! I'm very thankful that my natural friendliness has really helped me.

I'm grateful for the simplicity of life here in Daegu. Is it annoying that some of the stores aren't open as early or as late as they are back home? Sometimes, but--on the other hand, it has helped me to slow down. I cook breakfast at home EVERY day.  An egg and a piece of toast or bowl of cereal or slices of strawberry/cucumbers.  Restful mornings are something for which I am grateful.

I'm grateful that I've (sort of) figured out how to save money. (Christmas partly blew that out of the water, BUT Christmas is over and I can get back on the horse named Grantly and can add (once again) to savings for my future).  Anyway, in my first five paychecks, I've saved a months salary!!  I'm planning to try to save between 2-3 paychecks a year while I'm here.  The beauty of all of this is that I CAN DO IT!!  I've always struggled with that 'chore' before now, but--clearly--I can do it!

I'm grateful for some of the new foods I've experienced.  I love grapefruit tea, Holly Coffee's hot chocolate, DongKaSu (which is a breaded pork dish), pickled Japanese radish, chopped cabbage with delicious sauce on it, and the very weird vitamin drinks that come in dark brown glass bottles which are sold at every convenience store (except the one closest to my hotel in Pohang!)   I always love the Korean barbecue restaurants.  The grilled meat has an exceptional taste and all the lovely vegetable sides are awesome.  They even have this dish with romaine lettuce drizzled in a very tasty spiced oil that I had last night for the first time which was AWESOME.  I know I need to learn to like more of them, but....it is scary.  Once I went to a ramyeon shop and asked for ramen with no spice and the owner ASSURED me there was no spice, but my lips burned for 30 minutes after I left! LOL    

All in all, I'm grateful for many things here in Korea and I'm so grateful to my cousin Michael, who started this whole journey about 20 years ago, and Rachel for 'nagging' me to finish those last three classes, and Eric, for guiding me through the process of getting paperwork ready/processed, and my Mom (and many other family members) for being encouraging while I was completing the goal of getting here, and to myself, for FINALLY doing something (even though It took two years to make it happen!)

I have a lot for which to be grateful and--as I've said numerous times before today--I'm the luckiest girl in the world!