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25.9.10

Dear 15-year-old Self:

Put down the Tolkien book right now and listen up.

You're not going to be a lawyer. You're probably never going to be rich and you probably won't marry rich either. You may or may not get published and a lot of things in your life are going to change by the time you're 25. For one thing, Crossfire is going to get canceled in favor of more political coverage that is just yelling back and forth. Quit that pipe dream right now because you don't want to be one of those yelling crazies featured over and over in videos on the Internet (and yeah, videos on the Internet will become a really big deal).

Participating in debate is going to give you a lot of good research and logical skill, but don't let it go to your head. There will always be people smarter than you, and there will always be people dumber than you. The trick is to realize where you fit on the spectrum and listen to those on both sides and then decide for yourself where your ideas fit and what those ideas are. You'll do yourself a big favor if you stop parroting your elders' positions now and learn how to think for yourself.

9/11 just happened. Remind yourself: the taking of a life to avenge a life stolen is never a good idea. A lot of people will use this tragedy to justify a lot of politics in the future - this is your generation's Pearl Harbor. Mourn the lost, but remember to let reason speak in areas emotion can't.

You probably haven't heard this term yet, but "megachurches" aren't all they're cracked up to be. Find a church, now, that challenges you to be a better follower of Jesus, not just a better "you." This church will likely be small and unassuming, and that's okay - you'll like knowing everyone's names and being able to react to the sermon right then and there. It'll be okay.

Also: There are some times you should just stop talking. Learn to identify those times as quickly as you can and you'll save yourself a lot of trouble.

Your friends are not mini-yous. Stop trying to make them that way and let them be themselves. You may not like anime, but you'll be living in Japan someday (I know!) and you'll wish you'd paid closer attention when they tried to introduce you to things like Fruits Basket and Dragonball Z.

You're never going to be as "cool" as you want to be, and the sooner you learn to embrace your nerdiness (hint: Are you wearing your Lord of the Rings "One Ring" replica on a chain around your neck yet? You're a nerd), the better. You'll be a lot happier if you just be the nerd you are and quit trying to like things you don't like just to be "cool." The "popular" kids aren't going to give a rat's patoot where you end up. Be concerned about where you, yourself, are going, and only you should have input on that. You'll end up with an awesome life anyway.

Doubt is okay. It happens. Roll with it. Showing doubt about things shows that you're thinking about your life and not accepting things at face value. Be afraid of the moments you stop asking questions.

Sincerely,
Your 24 year old self.

PS: Oh yeah, and Harry Potter? Yeah, it's not as bad as you think. Just read it already.

-----
Inspired by Vlogbrothers

20.9.10

listen to this.



"Lover" - Derek Webb (starts at 3:00).

This song came up on shuffle today.

I have nothing more to add except the lyrics. Take a few minutes, listen, and appreciate everything that God - the Great Lover - has done for all of us, and will continue to do.

Like a man comes to an altar, I came into this town
With the world upon my shoulders, and promises passed down.
And I went into the water, my Father, he was pleased.
And I built it and I'll tear it down, so you will be set free.

Yes, and I found thieves and salesmen livin' in my Father's house,
And I know how they got in here, and I know how to get 'em out.
I'm turning this place over from floor to balcony,
Men, just like these doves and sheep, oh, you will be set free

'Cause I have always been a lover, from before I drew a breath
Well some things I loved easy, and some I loved to death.
See love's no politician, cause it listens carefully.
So of those who come, I can't lose one,
So you will be set free, oh, you will be set free.

Go on and take my picture, go on and make me up
I'll still be your defender, and you'll be my missing son
And I'll send out an army just to bring you back to me.
Cause regardless of your brother's lies, oh, you will be set free.

Cause I am my beloved's, and my beloved's mine
So you bring all your history; I'll bring my bread and wine
And we'll have a set party, where all the drinks are on me
And as surely as the rising sun, you will be set free.

17.9.10

Hope and the DMZ

Last Friday, I woke up absurdly early, ate a quick breakfast of pre-packaged Danish donuts I bought at 7/11 the night before, and hopped on the subway in Seoul, and rode two stops over to the Samgakji station near the Army base. I had to be there by 7:00AM so that I could ride on a tour bus for an hour and a half up to the De-Militarized Zone between North and South Korea.

A little background:

Shortly after WWII, war broke out on the Korean peninsula between North and South Korea. This war, which the US got heavily involved in, in the attempt to beat back the march of communism in Asia, is often referred to as "The Forgotten War," overshadowed by its cousin, the Vietnam War, which occurred about 15 years later and was also about beating back communism. However, in this war, 33,000 American soldiers and 152,000 South Korean soldiers were killed in action - not a small war by any means.

I became interested in Korea about a year ago when my internet friend, Kelley, came through Waco on a tour she was doing with a charity, and needed a couch to sleep on. I was able to give her a place to stay, and I attended the movie that she was there to show. The nonprofit - LiNK (Liberty in North Korea) - is about 1. Political action for the US to pressure China to recognize defectors from North Korea as political refugees, and 2. Aiding these refugees when they come to the United States. The film that they showed was incredibly eye-opening as to the situation happening in North Korea right now - political prisoner and labor camps, nationwide famine, and an oppressive regime run by what can only be called a crazy person.

Looking on a map, you can see that North Koreans only have a few places to go: down into South Korea, a journey which would take one through the heavily guarded and somewhat harsh 2.5 mile wide zone known as the DMZ. The other options are up into freezing cold Siberia, or over into communist China, which is sympathetic to the regime, and therefore, if you're found out without the proper papers, you get deported right back to North Korea, where, if you're not executed immediately, you get put in a political prison camp.

The situation is not good for the North Koreans, especially not for those who wish to leave.

So, it's almost needless to say that the DMZ was something I absolutely had to see when I visited Korea. When I asked a couple of friends who had lived there before, one who had been in the military, stationed at Seoul, told me not to muck around with hotel tours, but instead to sign up to go with the USO. Because it's associated with the US military, the USO tour allows you to go further into the DMZ than most hotel tours - those will just take you to the spots you could visit anyway: the 3rd tunnel and the lookout points.

Instead, with the USO, you get to visit the Joint Security Area, or JSA, which is an area that was a previously neutral zone on the Military Demarcation Line (MDL) plop in the middle of the DMZ. Yes, that's a lot of acronyms.

Back when it was first established, the JSA acted as a neutral zone between two technically still warring countries (North and South Korea only signed a cease fire - they never actually ended the war). Because the neutral zone spread over the MDL (the line marking the border between North and South), buildings belonging to each side were built all over the compound. Part of the problem arose when North Korea built checkpoints on the South Korean side - particularly three checkpoints surrounding just one South Korean one - checkpoint three. One day in 1976, near checkpoint three, some South Korean (ROK) and US soldiers and officers were working to cut down a giant Yew tree that was blocking the view from checkpoint three to checkpoint four. They were ambushed by North Korean soldiers and two US officers were killed.

As a result of the incident, the zone, while still "neutral" reverted back to country borders - the MDL now became of extreme importance, and so the line was, quite literally, marked through the camp. Part of the issue here was that there were several buildings sitting directly on the line. Therefore, concrete slabs were positioned along the MDL, between the buildings, to mark out where the border is. You can see just such a slab in this picture:


So, by being able to visit the JSA, I was able to get as close to North Korea as I could without having to go through the troublesome visa and screening process (which I doubt I'd ever pass, considering my views about oppression). For a few minutes, I got to actually stand in North Korea, and for several more, I got to stare across the way at North Korea soldiers who were staring back at me. For me, it was quite sobering - to think that 20 feet away from me is a regime known for oppression, terror, and propaganda filled with lies. We were specifically told not to wave, smile or do anything that could be used in North Korean propaganda.

Coming to Korea as an, I'll admit, somewhat ignorant American, I was surprised by how much South Korea actually knows about North Korea and the conditions there. In the War Memorial, there was an exhibit marking the 60th Anniversary of the establishment of the DMZ, and a large part of the exhibit was about the current conditions in North Korea. There was a lot about the history of the Korean War, and then a section that was simply "North Korea since the war." There were charts pointing out where each of the political prisoner and labor camps are. Pictures depicting how far the nuclear range of North Korea actually is (for my US readers - they would be lucky to hit Alaska), and others talking about the famine and food problems. Displays showed conditions in the political prisoner camps and what the cells are like if you're sentenced to death (they are so small that you can't even sit properly). It is, all in all, remarkable how much information is available, and was just sitting on display in the museum - for only the admission price of 5,000won (about $4.50US).

To go to that exhibit, learn about the DMZ, and then to go visit the actual DMZ - seeing not only North Korea, but the Bridge of No Return, the two towns that exist inside the borders, the site of the Yew Tree that was the catalyst for the axe murder incident, and the living statues that are the ROK soldiers who are the front line against North Korea - made the conflict very real. There is no doubt that things are very tense between the two countries and that it will take a lot of work for things to cool down.

But, however, as one walks through the war museum, and looks at things at the more "touristy" areas of the DMZ, there can be no doubt that there is a hope for reconciliation. South Korea exudes this hope of ending the war, of being able to embrace the North Koreans as brothers and of seeing freedom for their neighbors to the North.

After a tense morning at the JSA and staring across at North Korea, and an interesting hike down into a tunnel which North Korea had been digging in the 1970s in the hopes of ambushing Seoul, and visiting a lookout point where, were it a clear day, we would have been able to see the treeless mountains of the borderlands of North Korea - treeless because they don't want to give defectors any cover - we went to Dorasan Train Station, which is the last possible stop on the South Korean train line - Gyeongui - going North.

Here, in an almost deserted train station basically in the middle of nowhere (this station is, indeed, at the very edge of the DMZ), the sense of hope is almost palpable. There are reminders everywhere of what should be a bustling train station, but instead one that sits nearly empty except for those who happen to go through for work up in the Industrial City just inside the border of North Korea, which means mostly freight trains - there is no passenger service, if I remember correctly. There is a large, billboard sized poster that confronts the visitor when they enter the train station. This poster shows train tracks disappearing toward the horizon amongst green fields, with lettering in the blue sky above it, first in Korean and then in English: "Not the last station from the South, But the first station toward the North."

There is a sign lit up above doors leading to the tracks that says "To Pyeongyang," which is the North Korean capital. Another large poster on the wall displays the eventual map of an intercontinental railroad crossing through Europe, Russia, China and North Korea to connect Portugal and South Korea.

These are big dreams, big plans. And they all depend on the reunification and reconciliation of two nations divided. Despite the fact that it has been 60 years since the war and the separation was solidified between North and South, despite continually bristling tensions between the two countries as North Korea looks for excuses and threatens and tests their nuclear weapons, despite the propaganda and the lies, fighting and the strain exhibited so obviously at the JSA ... despite all this, there is hope.

And that, my friends, is a beautiful, beautiful thing.

12.9.10

small moment in korea

For those of you who didn't know, I just now returned from a 10 day vacation in Korea. It's the first time I've taken a vacation really for just myself, by myself. Since we are so close to Korea, I decided to simply take the ferry over to Busan, and then have a train ride up to Seoul. All in all, the trip took 12 days, and it was a fantastic time. Rather than give you a big ol' update that would be the equivalent of trapping you in my living room to show you slide after slide of photos of the same thing, I'm just going to bullet point favorite moments. I will do a post later this week on the DMZ/JSA/North Korea and reunification later this week.

So here goes, some brief highlights:

-When I got to Busan, it was raining, and I had to walk across a parking lot (a BIG parking lot) to get to the metro. When I was still about 20 yards from the metro, this complete stranger - a Korean lady - came up and held her umbrella over my head. It was completely unexpected and kind.

-I met a Buddhist priest in a coffee shop and he showed me the temple where he works and we talked about New York, which is a place in the US he has been.

-I discovered that my hotel in Busan was, quite literally, across the street from the beach, and that said beach is much less populated in September than in August.

-I found out that Dunkin' Donuts is nearly as popular in Korea as it is in Boston. I think I had it almost every day for breakfast.

-I went on a long hike that ended at a large Buddhist Temple, where I drank water from a mountain stream (and no, I didn't get sick - it was over a week ago and I'm still fine).

-I listened to every single "Wait Wait Don't Tell Me..." and "This American Life" podcast (both GREAT NPR shows) on my train rides around town - I seriously spent that much time on trains. It's actually a good thing because I love riding trains.

-I found a cute little bakery by Haeundae Market that had the most delicious Gateau chocolate cake I have ever tasted. Also in said market, I found socks with Obama's face on them. They made me laugh, so I bought them.

-I saw dolphins - real, live, in the wild dolphins - surfacing in the ocean, while I was riding on a ferry ride just off the beach in Busan.

-I rode on a high speed train through the countryside, going 300km/hr.

-There's a Taco Bell in Seoul. Enough said.

-I got to see the World Cup Stadium (and the field) where the 2002 final was played. It. Was. AWESOME.

-I had delicious Katsu-Don (battered and fried pork served over rice) in a random restaurant I just walked into and sat down.

-I found Harry Potter in Korean and discovered that the books are split up into volumes, so I had to buy two - volume I and volume II of book I.

-I walked in on a private function in the Seoul Art Museum, only because no one bothered to stop me. The museum was actually closed, but I couldn't see that right away (because of the event going on, there were a bunch of people around).

-I discovered that the Korean National Assembly Building is NOT like US Capitol buildings where you can just wander in. Oops.

-I found an English language bookshop called "What the Book?" that played Wilco. It was awesome.

-My taxi driver in Seoul was extremely kind when he realized he didn't know where the hotel was, and pointed me in a direction where I could maybe find it (and I did). We did well for as little English as he knew and the complete nonexistence in my knowledge of Korean.

-At the Korean War Memorial, I met a very nice security guard who took my picture for me.

-I found a cat cafe in Seoul. Yes, it's a cafe where you pay ten bucks to sit around playing with cats and drinking coffee. Uh-mazing.

-I stepped foot in North Korea.

Most importantly, on this trip, I learned how to travel alone, and how to love it. I pushed myself to do more things than I might have done if I was with someone else. I took some risks, and they paid off. It was, all in all, a fantastic trip. I learned a ton about Korea and the Korean war, and the De-Militarized Zone between the two Koreas. It's a very interesting story, one which I hope to tell later this week.

What are some of YOUR favorite vacation moments?