Roller Coasters and White Day

Part I

Roller coasters are one of my favorite things in all the world. I love the thrill and excitement they provide while simultaneously offering security and safety. Indulge me as I wax metaphorical with them for a minute. Roller coasters (typically) take you up a smooth incline only to drop you dramatically with pressure such that you might never otherwise feel in all your life. They are filled with ups, downs, twists, turns, loops, and periods of braking and acceleration. They make me feel thrilled, excited, surprised, terrified, happy, carefree, overwhelmed, unhinged, and safe--all within sixty seconds. Where else can you get such an experience? 

Real life.

For me, this past weekend was the beginning of real life. I'm not going to expand on the specifics right now, but it should suffice to say that I feel like I'm on a roller coaster. I've spent twenty-five years on the smooth, up-hill, preparatory incline, and in the last month I reached the zenith. You know the zenith if you've ever been on a roller coaster: the 0.5 seconds when you can see your car three miles away in the parking lot and the entire surrounding countryside in the blink of an eye, right before you drop recklessly down the tracks. This past weekend was that drop, the drop that lets you know you aren't on a merry-go-round eating a lollipop and waving to your mom but on a ride for grown-ups who could pass out, vomit, or, better yet, thrive in the experience. My life now is that fast-paced drop that tells you that you have begun the real ride. I'm happy to say that so far I'm thriving with the challenges and the new-found excitement, but I've got a bit of that nervousness that accompanies any fall of a hundred feet or more at high speeds. But I know God is my harness and that regardless of the spins and loops and brakes and boosts I won't go flying off the tracks. 

The roller coaster has really started and there's no where else I'd rather be.

Part II

March 14 was "White Day" in Korea, and as racist as it sounds, it has nothing to do with white people. It's actually Valentine's Day reloaded, because February 14 is when girls buy guys something, and White Day is when the guys return the love with gifts of their own. Naturally, I had to participate--and I was happy to do so, I should add--and so Jenny and I met on Saturday evening and had a nice date in a department store. And yes, I realize that sounds ridiculous, so I should elaborate. In Korea, department stores are the equivalent of shopping malls, and so the one near my house includes a grocery store, a wine shop, a food court, nice restaurants on the tenth or twelfth floor (I can't remember which), a Starbucks, and a host of other things typically found in a mall. So I bought her some roses and wrote a lovely poem in her honor, and we ate at a Japanese place. Following the meal Jenny, who had her hair done that day, picked out some hair clips and a hair dryer that I was also happily obliged to purchase as White Day gifts (by the way, I'm totally clueless as to why March 14 is called White Day. Pi Day is so much more reasonable to me) before getting some coffee.

At the coffee shop our conversation moved into serious territory and it's now more clear than ever that this is the most serious relationship I've ever had and things are moving in the right direction, albeit speedier than I expected. It was sometime in the evening that I hatched this roller coaster scheme--it seemed apt for the situation. The talk was really positive and helpful and we both got a much better understanding of where we are heading, so I'm really glad we had it.

Sunday morning I got up before 7am to play soccer. It was cold at first but it warmed up some, and after doing some laps and drills, I felt ready to play. Unfortunately my left leg wasn't so eager, and midway through one of the games it cramped up on me and I had to do some quick stretches to avoid some serious pain. According to David, cramps are the result of a lack of salt, although if someone else has more scientific answers, I'm open to them. I was invited by the team to play with them on April 5 at the practice field next to Daegu World Cup Stadium, which will mark the first time I've played on grass in almost a year. That will be exciting.

More exciting on April 5 is Juan's visit. He told me yesterday he has purchased his plane ticket, so he'll arrive on the 5th in the late afternoon or early evening and will stay here for about a week. I'll be working up an itinerary for his time here, but I can already tell it'll be a fun but exhausting month come April. But I'm really, really looking forward to it. His visit will also be a trial run for my dad and Donna's visit two weeks after that. Life's getting happily busy--all part of the roller coaster experience, I think.

Peace and love--