Top 10 of 2008

In honor of New Year’s, a few top 10 lists to highlight the ups and downs of the year:






Top 10 Things I’m proud of myself for doing in 2008:


10. Going on my 7th house-building trip (to The Philippines)
9. Feeling comfortable in my community in Korea and finding my niche
8. Hiking Mt. Fuji
7. Finishing my first year of full time teaching
6. I no longer have to repeat myself for a taxi driver a million times before he understands my Korean—most of the time, once is enough
5. Jumping 12,000 ft. out of a plane when I am a) uneasy on planes and b) afraid of heights
4. Understanding global issues better and trying to not just learn about them, but act
3. Coaching soccer and encouraging the girls to improve, bit by bit
2. Traveling alone to 5 countries
1. Deepening my faith and pushing myself outside my comfort zone
**********************************************







Top 10 Things I’ve learned in 2008:




10. All the lingo associated with International Baccalaureate (IBO) and the million and one acronyms used by staff at my school
9. How to play volleyball with my hands (I no longer serve with my feet!)
8. I can now speak a bit more Korean (thanks to Annette)
7. Basic techniques of drawing and painting (also thanks to Annette and her willingness to let me join her high school class)
6. That I’m highly prone to caffeine addictions
5. That Canada is a lot more interesting and cool than I thought it was before working with so many Canadians
4. That North Koreans should be helped, not feared
3. That I am outgoing enough to solo travel
2. Human trafficking is a very real issue and I need to find ways to help fight against it
1. There is SO much that I do not know or understand
************************************************







Top 10 challenges in 2008:





10. Time or lack thereof—so many things I want to do in a day!
9. A lot of really long flights (I spent well over 80 hours in the air this year!)
8. Calling people in different time zones—there’s a 17 hour difference during the winter!
7. Cooking in a small space with different availability of ingredients
6. Adjusting to my new community in Korea (this has been a continuous process since I moved)
5. Learning to collaborate with such a wide range of people
4. A complete lack of single males in my community (why do I always seem to end up in programs or places with WAY more single females than single males?)
3. Very limited visiting time to the States
2. Communication—Korean is a really difficult language
1. Being so far away from people I love
**********************************************







Top 10 Strangest things I’ve done/seen in 2008:



10. dragged about 10 people to sled down a baby bunny hill for numerous hours for my 25th birthday (in my defense, I had no idea the hill was going to be so small)
9. worked at a school where it is totally normal for my students to call my personal cell, leave me facebook messages, and stay at my apartment when the dorms close
8. hiked a massive Korean mountain in the middle of the night
7. hung out naked with a bunch of coworkers at jimjilbangs on a regular basis
6. ate a scorpion, seahorse, and roach in a street market in China and snake in Taiwan
5. friended my mom on facebook 
4. got body slammed by a Buddhist monk trying to get on the subway in Seoul
3. skydived in New Zealand
2. interacted with kids in the Philippines who had been rescued from child trafficking
1. spooned with a full grown tiger in Thailand
********************************************






For 2009, the top 10 things I would like to accomplish:



10. Learn to cook some Korean food
9. Find a boy (what single straight female honestly doesn’t want this?)
8. Visit a region of the world I have never traveled to (South America? Africa? The Middle East?)
7. Speak and understand Korean better
6. Continue to work on finding balance in my life (as you well know, I always try to put too much on my plate)
5. Eat and live in a healthier manner
4. Do a better job keeping a Sabbath day
3. Learn how to best use my talents and resources to fight human trafficking
2. Continue to grow (spiritually, emotionally, professionally)
1. Maintain close relationships with the people I care about (even when they are thousands of miles away)