Let me start by saying I apologize for leaving everyone hanging without any updates on what I’ve been doing lately. I’ve had a whirlwind couple of months because…I moved back stateside! One day last fall I just had this gut feeling that after three and a half years in Korea, I was done. I was ready to move back to the U.S. It wasn’t a decision I had been planning for months; it was really a spur-of-the-moment idea and I never really looked back. I guess when you know, you know, because I knew I had made the right decision immediately after purchasing my one-way ticket back to Missouri.
Waiting at Incheon International Airport in Korea waiting for my flight to Seattle!
While the idea of moving back to the U.S. was exciting, the actual process of moving is never fun, but when you have to pack up all the junk you’ve accumulated in the past few years into a couple of suitcases, it’s even worse. Let me tell you, the people at my neighborhood post office got to know me really well. On multiple occasions, I packed up my suitcases, dragged them down the street to the post office, repacked them into cardboard boxes that were then shipped to Missouri by boat. Yes, by boat, that took 2 months to arrive, because that was the cheapest option of getting my stuff to the U.S.
My Alien Registration Card I had to give up after going through Korean customs and immigration.
So now that I’ve managed to get myself and all of my junk back stateside, what have I been doing? Well for starters, I’ve been making up for lost time by just hanging out with my family. I had only seen my family three times in the last three years so I had missed out on a lot; I’ve been enjoying going to my grandparent’s house for lunch, watching KU basketball with Dad and going shopping with Mom. I also let myself enjoy a month of relaxing and unpacking and getting somewhat settled again.
My sweet friends threw me a going-away party!
And they made me a sign!
Since the first of the year has passed, I’ve been busy substitute teaching while also job searching. The big question I’ve been asked a lot is what’s next for me. Well, I’m hoping to put my international business degree to use in my next job and break into the marketing field, preferably in a global company; I also want to move to a prominent city again. Living in Seoul gave me a taste of big city life and I loved it; I loved the hustle and bustle, being able to walk everywhere and having so many places at my fingertips. Down the line, I would love to work for a company that does business with or has ties in Korea so that I could still have Korea be apart of my life. Until then, I’m going to keep working on my Korean skills and frequenting Love Sushi in Jeff City, which has some pretty good Korean food (I recommend the kimchi pancake and jap-chae).
Reunited with my family!
I missed my cute Abbey Road
Another reason I kept procrastinating writing this article was because writing it down means that my life in Korea really is over. Something about putting it into words really resonates that that chapter of my life is finished. While I knew it was never going to last forever, it is still fresh in my mind everyday and being in an “in-between” stage right now is not where I want to be. But I know something new and exciting will present itself soon, I just have to be patient, something I’ve never been very good at. So wish me luck!
