More flowers and trees

I know. You're so surprised that I took pictures of flowers and trees. What can I say? I like plants. Last weekend we went on more adventures. We went to a city about an hour away that has Korea's equivalent of the Great Wall of China. It was an ancient fortress built to keep out invading armies. All the way around the wall was a row of those bright fuschia flowers. Very pretty.
After visiting the wall we went to a nearby temple. The temple was in a forest. We were rather excited to walk through a forest. We thought the entrance fee was worth it just for that part. There was a little river going through with some cool trees along it. I took many pictures of course.
This tree grows out of a rock. It's apparently a national monument. It is really cool, but I'm not sure it's national monument worthy.
Finally you get some happy spring flowers. Enjoy.

Cherry blossoms

I'm a little late posting my weekly update, but I was busy procrastinating from making lesson plans for a new class I am going to teach next week. Then I was busy making lesson plans for that class. Now I am procrastinating again, so I thought I would give you an update.

Last Wednesday was election day here. To encourage everyone to go out and vote, it is a national holiday. Not wanting to waste a day off in the middle of the week we decided to go for a car trip to see the cherry blossoms in bloom. We went to a nearby national park called Naejansan.
Of course it rained on our mini-vacation, but we went anyway. There were fewer people in the park that way. The rain made the mountains look really cool because the tops were covered in mist.

There was a little babbling brook going through the park. I took lots of pictures because it was pretty.As the whole purpose of the trip was to see cherry blossoms, and to have a barbeque, I thought I would give you a few cherry blossom pictures. We didn't have the barbeque. The rain didn't let up all day. This is a close up of the cherry blossoms.

And now a road lined with cherry trees. I have to say that cherry trees are very photogenic so all the pictures I took look good even if some were fuzzy.
I think I have done enough procrastinating for now. I should make some more lesson plans so I will know what I am teaching next week.

High School

Well, this weekend was my 10 year high school reunion. I couldn't go, as I'm in Korea and it would be a little expensive to go for a weekend. Instead, I did some thinking about high school. I don't have very many happy memories of high school. I never understood the people who thought that high school was wonderful. It sure wasn't wonderful for me. In Warman I was the quiet bookworm that nobody talked to. It wouldn't have mattered if they had talked to me, as I was too shy to talk back. I was determined that when I went to Western it would be different and I would do everything. I tried out for dinner theatre. Didn't make it. I tried out for Sonshine. Didn't make it. I tried out for traveling chorus. Didn't make it. I tried out for musical. Didn't make it. Do you see a trend here? I did play soccer, but I was not an integral part of the team and I knew it. How could I not have? The coach and other players never let me forget. The first few months at Western only served to push me further into my shell. That was not what I had planned. Why is it that our plans don't work so well? Grade 12 was a little better. I was student council president, I was an integral part of the soccer team and I made traveling chorus. I didn't make Sonshine, and yes, it still bugs me. That was something I had really wanted to do. I still didn't really talk to people and they didn't really talk to me. I remember at the end of the year when Mrs. Muller had us all write notes to each other and then she typed them up and gave them to us. The only thing that my class mates said to me was that I was smart. It made me sad that after two years with most of these people the only thing they could say about me was that I was smart. They didn't bother to try to learn any more than that, and I didn't have the courage to let them see any more than that.

I'm glad high school is over. I am also glad that I am not the person I was then anymore. I have changed a lot since then. I talk to people, and I hope that most days I let them see that I am more than a smart person. In some ways I wish I could do high school again as the me I am now. Maybe it would have been a lot more fun. Maybe I would have had more friends. Maybe I would have more good memories. The thing about the past is that it is in the past. We can learn from it, but we don't get to do it over. We just have to live with it. I was who I was then, and I am who I am now. I like who I am now. I will make happy memories now and give up the sad memories from then. I am a different person now, and all that happened to someone else.

I'm not sure if I am disappointed that I had to miss my 10 year reunion. It would have been nice to be home and to see everyone, but I don't know how much I need to relive high school. Once was enough for me. I am disappointed about missing the alumni chorus. I really like that. Oh well. Next time.