my achy breaky heart

It's officially one week before I head back to Cali.. well, Technically a few hours less than a week but you get my drift. =] I'm super excited, but I don't think I've fully realized that I'll be going home. I feel... restless; I really want to go home. I haven't really felt any regret or sadness yet.. Perhaps that's all brewing inside until my last few hours here.

I thought I'd share something with you all that I thought was rather remarkable.. Mind you, this involves some pretty embarrassing information on my part.. information that will probably stamp me a permanent spot in the losers' hall of fame.. but it's interesting nonetheless so I'll share it. :D

I was talking to.. I think Sarah darkness a few weeks ago about what it would take to keep me here another year in Korea. (I'm really really excited to go home.) I think we came to the conclusion that if my perfect guy (perfect at first glance, anyway.. as in incredibly handsome, rich, charming, the works..) asked me out on a date, then I might decide to sign on for another year in Korea. However, feeling preetttty freaking safe that the chances of that happening are slim to none, I was pretty sure I was going to be heading home in a few weeks time.

Now, here we are, a week before my departure, and nothing's changed... sort of.

Have any of you been to Korea? If you have, you know that it's pretty much... couples central. Couple tees. Couple cell phones. Campus couples. Cafes for couples.. ( A twosome place. Really? You had to single out us loners, eh?) Almost everything in the country screams "YOU SHOULD BE IN A RELATIONSHIP! WHY ARE YOU HERE ALONE?!" Every time I go somewhere alone, whether it be a cafe, or a restaurant or the market, I always manage to feel a little bit lonely because I'm usually surrounded by others in love.

I've had my ups and downs of lonliness in my life. I've never had a boyfriend.. never been on a date. never had my first kiss. (man this is embarassing..) and for the most part, I've been okay. I've been lonely, sometimes lonelier than at others, but being here in Korea has affected me a little bit more. A lot of my friends back at home are single.. Here, not so much. It also doesn't help that my students are constantly asking me if I have a boyfriend or am I "solo"? Am I married? How many boyfriends have you had? How old were you when you got your first kiss? Kids, your guess is as good as mine.

However, in the last few weeks, something rather remarkable.. (at least in my uneventful life) happened. twice. I was asked out.

hAHAHHAHA.A

Okay, so let me tell you what happened. The first time, I was exiting the subway station about to walk home, when this older guy.. (If I had to guess his age, I would say 33-35.) approached me and basically said that I was his ideal type and would I like to go have some coffee with him? He looked fairly normal, although.. old.. and kind of nerdy.. but I declined, and it was actually quite a feat to brush him off. The second time was about a week ago, when I was leaving my officetel heading for work when this guy who apparently lives in my building asked me for my number.. I told him I was leaving the country, though, and I haven't seen him since.


So what do I make of these two encounters? I think it's pretty amazing that in the midst of feeling lonely, while being in a country by myself.. being surrounded by signs of love and boyfriends/girlfriends, that my loving God takes the time to give me reassurance that he is, in fact, preparing someone for me, and that however undesirable I might believe myself to be, HE still loves me and tries to make me feel a little of that love.. in a more obvious way.

So thank you, Lord, for making my day. =]