Baby Video

In the next few posts, I'm going to try to put up videos of some of our families' and friends' reactions to the baby news. We got a video camera, so now I just have to have Taylor help me with getting those videos online.

I do have one video to share. We used this video to announce the baby to many of our family and friends and it was great. I'm pretty proud of it too because I made it all by myself. My first video...yay!

A lot of baby updates will continue to be on the "baby blog" I created. You can access it by going here:
http://loveyoubabytothemoon.blogspot.com/

Some of you have said "You HAVE to post belly pictures!" I'm still debating if I want to do this or not but if I do, they will be posted to that other blog.

Enjoy the video.

Prayer Requests

We have a couple of prayer requests.

1. The situation with North Korea.
-The tension and threat on this peninsula is real and there is a definite instability and unsurity coming from the other side of the border. Seoul is only 35 miles from the North Korean border. So, the threat is real, which is why we need to pray. But that doesn't mean focus on the danger that is there or the instability. That will only cause fear and anxiety in our hearts. I know we have a lot of family members that are worried (especially grandmas and grandpas...). We're not bringing this up to invoke fear in your hearts. Fear is not from God. We are not afraid. But we do need to be sober-minded and pray for the situation. We need peace, not panic, to pray.

This is something our pastor said in a recent message that I thought was so good- "Even in the face of real tension, the peace and hope we have is real. The purpose and protection of God is real. Have faith in God and his promises...have faith in what is true..not just in what is real."

Romans 10:11 says that anyone who trusts in God will never be put to shame.

2. The second prayer request we have is for wisdom in telling our employer about our pregnancy. A lot of things are changing at our school right now- our working hours will be changing, the new school year starts in March, so student enrollment is in question, and many other things. This has caused the management at our school to be very stressed during this time. Our school is a private academy so it's subject to different standards than regular schools. A lot of times academies like ours, called hogwans- Christian or not- are known for not abiding by laws and rules that are supposed to govern them. Legally, they are not allowed to fire me for being pregnant but that doesn't mean they won't. We just need wisdom on the right time to tell them. Our doula advised us to wait until as close to March (the new school year) as possible.

Thanks for the prayers.

Big Announcement

We have an announcement to make.................

Yes, it's true. That's not just news for Ricky and Lucy. We- Ashley and Taylor- are having a baby! We've been keeping this a secret for almost 4 months now! We just had to tell our family first before making the public announcement. Now that all the family knows, it's not a secret anymore.

I have been keeping a blog with updates on baby since October. Check it out here:

http://loveyoubabytothemoon.blogspot.com/

Conformity is funny!

On a lighter note from the last post, I wanna take a minute to talk about the conformity that is so strongly interwoven in the Korean culture. I went over it a little in the last post. Koreans, and Asians in general, tend to be collectivistic in their thoughts and actions versus the individualism that is seen in the West. American teachers often have a hard time getting their Korean students to raise their hands and be singled out in class to give an answer. They'd much rather work within a group. The emphasis is on the group rather than the individual. From my limited understanding, much of this "group think" is rooted in Confucianism. But I don't know much about that.

One thing that always amazes me and makes me laugh is the crosswalks here. As I said, people don't like to stand out. Several times now, I have approached a crosswalk where many people are standing. There are no cars in sight, but the walking light is not green. Sometimes I decide to go for it. And almost every time I do, at least 1 person follows. Sometimes 3 or 4. No one will step out and be the first, but when somebody does it first, they will follow. This continues to amaze me.

Today I came to a crosswalk that was flashing green, meaning it was about to turn red. Two older ladies were standing there contemplating whether they should go. I started to make a run for it, and didn't even make it across before it turned red. The cars had to wait for me. But I heard this cackling laughter behind me. One of the ladies followed me out and was running behind me laughing the whole way. It was such a funny site. I wish someone had recorded the whole process. Conformity is a funny thing.

Do I smell funny?

I guess racism is a current theme in my 2 recent posts. In the last post I talked about how Koreans can be a bit racist when it comes to wanting a certain type of people to teach their kids English- mainly just white people. Normally I try to stay away from making generalizations and grouping am entire people group into one category but in this case it's quite appropriate and fitting for me to make such a general statement. Korea is a land of conformity and collectivistic thinking. There is a strong emphasis on being the same. It's not normal to stand out and be different unlike the west where individuality is encouraged and promoted. Many Asians and most especially Koreans strive to be the same. I obviously cannot say that about all Koreans but it can certainly be said of the majority of the people in this country.

Anyway.. There is another form of racism that I never realized I would experience. Many Koreans, especially the elderly, are racist against white people. In their defense, a lot of young people just out of college come over here to teach English and spend their evenings and weekends in the bars and clubs making fools of themselves. Combine that with the American military who are known for getting drunk and starting fights, one can hardly blame Koreans-a generally peaceful people- for not wanting these idiot foreigners here. BUT NOT ALL OF US ARE THAT WAY! I've experienced racism in small ways mainly on the subways. The seats next to me sometimes will remain empty until all the other seats have bee filled and there is nowhere else to sit. This is not a comon occurence; it's only happened 4 or 5 times. But it still feels strange to know that because my skin color and perhaps my language or culture is different, I'm not accepted. I feel for my black brothers and sisters! Right now in fact there is an elderly man sitting across from me on the subway that has been staring at me for the last 10 minutes. I'm sure it's just out of curiousity. I'm pretty used to getting stared at by now. But it's a different thing when people are clearly avoiding you.

Just a few minutes ago as I was waiting for the subway to arrive I decided to sit on a bench. This particular bench can hold about 4 people. There was one older gentleman sitting on one end of the bench. I sat down on the opposite end of the bench. There was plenty of space between us. As I sat down, he looked at me, stood up, and walked about 25 feet away to sit on a bench that 2 people were already sitting on. Talk about a slap in the face. Well, it's all part of the experience of living in a foreign culture I guess. Take the good and leave the bad. Even though it seems I'm just picking on Koreans, that's only because it's where I find myself. I know racism exists everywhere; especially in America.

Take it to the Cross

When we were at ORU, Taylor and I both had the privilege of going on several ORU Missions trips. Thank you to all of you who supported us in those trips. ORU Missions has, what I believe to be, one of the best missions training programs out there. In addition to preparing the teams throughout the year, there is a week-long intensive "ropes course" usually at a retreat center- led by a highly trained team that really knows what they're doing.

One of the established things we always do during Ropes is have a cross somewhere on campus. Whenever you're out of line- being late to stuff, not doing what you should be, or having a bad attitude, you are asked to "take it to the cross." This consists of physically run to whatever the location of the cross is on the campus, stopping to take time and reflect and ask God to help you, and running back to whatever activity you were in the midst of. If your attitude still hasn't changed, well, take it to the cross again!

Today I need to remind myself to "take it to the cross." I got what was not only some bad news, but some distasteful news that makes me want to talk really bad about Koreans. You see, I have been trying to find someone to substitute for me for about 2 months now during the time I'll be in America. So far, my efforts have been fruitless. Nobody can or wants to do it. I was trying to find someone I know within a network, rather than a random stranger off of Craigslist. Apparently, the parents would prefer a random stranger off of Craigslist.

I finally found someone- a friend at church- that was willing to do it- partially just as a favor for me, because I really needed to find someone. My friend, Judy, is Korean-American. She speaks English just like me, no accent. She barely knows Korean. Yet, she doesn't qualify according to my boss. Why? Because she is not white. Yes, that's what she told me. The parents pay for an American to be their teacher. I said she IS an American! She said, "Well not Asian, just white." "Not even black?" I asked. "Um, well, um, white is best." Yes, that's really what she said. I'm not putting those words in her mouth. All based on the appearance. The parents don't care if she grew up in America, doesn't know Korean, has American citizenship...none of that matters. Only that she has a white face.

So I asked, to clarify, "You're telling me that you would rather me get a random person off of Craigslist that we have no idea if they are trustworthy or reliable or capable- rather than someone I know personally who I trust and has given me her word to show up?" My boss' response- "Yes. I agree with you, but this is what the parents want." And keep in mind that this is only for 8 days total. It's not like the person is taking over for me permanently- they're just stepping in for a little over a week.

I really want to go off right now...I'm so irritated! But, I just gotta remember- Take it to the cross!

Happy Thanksgiving!

How was your Thanksgiving??? Thursday and Friday were just normal days for us. I think we said "Happy Thanksgiving" to each other once, but we didn't eat a special meal or do anything else. In fact, we had to work. Korea doesn't honor American holidays. Sheesh! But it was all made up for today. We had a Thanksgiving Banquet at church. Turkey, stuffing, potatoes...the works! So much food and there were even some leftovers.

The best part of the night (beside the turkey) was the talent show that Taylor co-hosted! I missed his opening act, but everyone said it was hilarious. I was able to catch his second performance on video. If you've ever seen Arrested Development, this video will just be that much more hilarious.

Here's a couple other performances from the show. 1 hilariously funny and 1 serious but good.

This guy was seriously hyped up on some Red Bull or some kind of energy drink!!

This is Marcus, one of the pastors at our church. And yes, ladies, he is single.

Nefarious

It's been awhile..almost a month. Just haven't really had anything to write about. Until now.

Last week we watched a screening of a new documentary called "Nefarious: Merchant of Souls." It is all about the sex trafficking industry and it's absolutely heartbreaking. You can read the synopsis here: http://nefariousdocumentary.com/the-films/nefarious-i/

I found myself asking God many times throughout the film "God where are you in all this?" Little girls being sold by their families to perverted men....women being kidnapped and sold into sex slavery, forced prostitution...it breaks your heart.

Some of the more poignant quotes from the film:

"Prostitution is the exploitation of vulnerability." 

"Prostitution is a man masturbating in a woman's body."

"Wherever there is prostitution there is human trafficking. To stop trafficking, you have to stop prostitution all together."

But there is hope. This is not a lost cause. And I have to remember that. There are stories of hope.

According to the US Dep. of Health and Human Services, "Sex trafficking is the fastest growing criminal industry in the world."

It is time to put a stop to this modern-day slavery. This movie is both discouraging and inspiring. Don't stay in the dark. It is time to make yourself aware. Watch this movie.

This is a quote from William Wilberforce- if you don't know who he is you need to study your history!

"If to be feeling alive to all sufferings of my fellow creatures and to be warmed with the desire of relieving their distress, is to be a fanatic, I am one of the most incurable fanatics ever permitted to be at large.” William Wilberforce


Ways to get involved:
1. Watch the documentary and share it with others- raise awareness.
2. Check out Not For Sale - an abolitionist movement- and learn a lot more there. They've got dozens of resources and ways to get involved. 


It doesn't matter if you are a Christian or not. Trafficking is not a religious issue- it is a human rights issue! Get involved. Be a voice for the voiceless.