some thoughts

If you've read the other page on why I've named this blog whyseoulserious, you'll know that one of my top priorities here is to study Korean. However, the main reason why I decided to leave Singapore for a while was really to take a break from a few things back at home, and work was one of them.

It is therefore a refreshing experience to be sitting at the other side of the classroom in a language class. There is still pressure, but the pressure is different. I am free to make mistakes. I'm not expected to know everything, and the best part is the attention is never only on me for extended periods of time. I guess that's part of the reason why I experienced burnout - the constant interaction with people day in and day out was just slowly wearing me out and denying me that chance to recharge my social battery.

Anyway, I daresay I can understand the struggles my teachers (I have 2) have. I used to teach students whose tongue I don't speak, and when they spoke conspiratorially in an unknown language to each other, it was ... disturbing. Yesterday, I experienced it myself, but as a student. Without going into detail, one of my classmates made a subtle jibe in English at a comment made by my teacher which she thought was myopic and narrow-minded, and some other classmates snickered along.

I'm sure my classmates weren't trying to be mean. But when I stole a glance at my teacher, her expression told me everything. It was so familiar, that helpless and forlorn expression. I'm positive she must have felt awkward and disturbed when her students suddenly broke out into English (a language she doesn't know well) and then started laughing, because her face went blank for a while and she abruptly changed the topic. I don't blame her. I would probably have done the same.

The thing is ... many students neglect the fact that teachers are also human. Teachers have feelings too, and teachers don't know everything. Having taught before, I think I know what they want, and I'm so not going to make my teachers' lives hell. I hope that by being a student here, I can 1) study something I enjoy and also to enjoy being a student, 2) learn more about being a language teacher and finally, 3) encourage my teachers.

:)

***

I've started joining the school's worship service which the teachers join too. Haha. It's entirely in Korean and I totally couldn't follow anything today. Should I join an international congregation? I'm rather half-hearted to do so since I'm in Seoul ... we'll see.

Prayer for today: godliness with contentment is great gain. God, please help me not to covet what others have, but to be truly thankful for the many blessings I already have from you.