Yes, We Have No Thanksgiving!

Last year on Thanksgiving, I went to a party thrown by missionaries and played Uno. This year, some of those missionaries are gone, already on a different mission. In the end, they didn't get into North Korea, and since their mission was only for two years, they are now slowly dispersing to other parts of the world or other stages of their lives.

Seems like a bit of a waste, to be honest. I finally asked Father Njoroje a couple weeks ago why Catholic priests and nuns move around the world, and his answer made a lot of sense. The priests in my class, for example, are scheduled to stay in Korea for a couple years, learn the language, help the needy, and then move on to another location. Fatigue sets in after a while; you don't want someone to turn into a nutter a la the father in Poisonwood Bible. But the young missionaries I had Thanksgiving with last year never made it into their target area, and spent the whole two years learning Korean and simply living in South Korea. Huh.

My dressmaking friend Tex is going to stay here and work as a teacher at the international school where her boyfriend also works. The way she told it, the director of the school said to her boyfriend, "I feel like I'm supposed to offer [Tex] a job here." In other words, God means for Tex to stay in Korea, possibly get married to her boyfriend, and resume teaching kiddies.

I wish that God/Yahweh/Allah/J.C./Buddha/Vishnu/etc. would speak to me as clearly as __ seems to speak to Tex. Then I think, maybe __ does, and I just don't listen. Or can't hear. That's the kind of thing that makes me nervous. Then I remember that I believe that if there is a __, __ is a watchmaker type, and that __'s given me the capability to observe, ask questions, analyze, think, and decide for myself. Darn watch! Darn inability to come up with a mortal/deity-neutral pronoun!

As usual, I've got a lot to be thankful for this Thanksgiving. Just now, for example, the assistant director of the publications department told me that I didn't have to finish the stuff she gave me yesterday by the end of today. Hallelujah! I was wondering if I would be able to finish it today before taekwondo -- I don't think I could have. Now I've got the weekend to work on it. It's eery how you sometimes get cut a break just at the right time.

Time to take off from the office. Happy Thanksgiving, all, and a special hello to b.c., who knows what to do when the turkey's armpits are still frozen.