Another Busy, Cold, and Wonderful Week at YISS!

I continued to receive Christmas cards and family photos through regular mail this past week!  It is always great to receive mail from friends outside of Korea!  It helps warm my heart and soul when it is very cold in Seoul!  Yeppers, it was another cold week in Seoul, but a tad warmer!  Please pray for our teachers and students.  Many are suffering with nasty colds and some with the flu.  Two of our teachers (who don't want us to say who they are in any of our blogs/emails back home) have been diagnosed with cancer over the last several weeks.  Both are being treated and the prognosis looks good.  Thank you for praying for them.  God knows who they are!

It has been a very busy week!  Online registration for Elementary After School Activities went well - after a technology glitch as soon as the online registration began.  I immediately became anxious (a slow learner in this area), but went directly to one of our IT people, Carol Pitts, who is so calm and peaceful.  She and her husband have been used of God to continue to teach me to relax and not become so frantic.  Carol calmly corrected the problem and things progressed well!  After the registration closed on Wednesday, a mountain of work involving the use of technology had to be accomplished.  I am actually enjoying working with these sorts of things now.  It still takes some time and changes have to be made after I have everything just right (but I am learning to go with the flow) and continue to realize it is not about ME!  I am so thankful for technology because what I have to do to get everything ready for the first classes of Quarter Three After School Activities would take MANY MANY more hours if I had to do it all the old fashioned way.  Thanks for praying!

One of our second grade teachers shared the following on a post and I have been thinking lots about it:

‎"This is what I've come to believe about change: it's good, in the way that childbirth is good, and heartbreak is good, and failure is good. By that I mean that it's incredibly painful, exponentially more so if you fight it, and also that it has the potential to open you up, to open life up, to deliver you right into the palm of God's hand, which is where you wanted to be all long, except that you were too busy pushing and pulling your life into exactly what you thought it should be...I've learned the hard way that change is one of God's greatest gifts....and that in many cases...change is a function of God's graciousness, not life's cruelty." S. Niequist~

I heard someone say once that the only ones who like change are babies with dirty diapers.  I do not like to have my plans changed!  I want it my way!  Rather selfish I believe.  Maybe you don't suffer with this as I have.  Technology and after school activities are continuing to help me understand change and how selfish and prideful I really am.

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The YISS PTO had its Newcomers' Coffee this past week!  I always enjoy meeting the new families and seeing them get so involved right away with volunteering at YISS.  One of the areas in the elementary school that these new parents can get involved with is our Read-A-Thon.  Just before Christmas we had our Fall Book Fair and many PTO volunteers made it a great success.  The past two weeks volunteers have been covering the MANY books purchased by parents, and by the proceeds of the Book Fair, to be given to the various classrooms!  It was so exciting to see them happily covering each of the new books for our students!

Some of the wonderful PTO volunteers covering books

for the elementary classrooms!

 Above is the PTO Chair for Books, Mr. Hagerstrom!  I really enjoy getting to know him.  He has multiple sclerosis but is so joyful and calm!  He is doing an outstanding job coordinating all of the many book activities at YISS!

Here are just a few of the boxes of books that were 

covered for classroom teachers to enjoy with their 

students in their classroom libraries!

More of the PTO volunteers enjoying each other as they cover books for our students!

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In the middle of the very busy week, I also had the privilege of leading devotions with our elementary staff on Thursday and then being involved in a puppet skit in each of the Chapels and the OASIS assembly on Friday!  It is always a joy of mine to share with the tremendous group of teachers at YISS and to also be able to share each week on Fridays in the lives of all of our elementary students.

I have been thankful that I have not had as many problems with colds and coughing this year.  Many of you have been praying!  I also have been trying to eat more of one of my favorite soups in Korea - Chung Guk Jang!!  Many call it the "Stinky Soup" because of the nasty smell, but I really like it and have been trying to eat more of it especially during these cold days.

This is one of my favorite soups - Chung Guk Jang!!  So delicious although it smells like dirty socks!!  It is very healthy for you!  I also enjoy Kimchik Chigae (not sure spelling is correct) and Booda Chigae!! (spelling may not be correct but that is how it sounds.)  You should come and try one of these tasty soups!!

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On Friday night as I was walking home from YISS, I noticed a brand new business.  I am afraid it will not be a good thing for me! :-)  The business is called "Ben's Cookies" and the aroma coming from the tiny store was amazing!  It was saying, "Gregg, come in here and just try a nibble." I did and now I am afraid I am hooked on Ben's Cookies!  They are simply delicious!!!!

This is the sign that greets those who pass

by this area in Itaewon!

 This is the storefront of this tiny shop with the LONG line of people waiting to enjoy the very delicious cookies!!!

Two of my favorites are in this picture: Coconut 

and Double Chocolate Chunk!!

Another view of the warm and yummy cookies that can be seen as you pass by the store.  You really need to taste one!!

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It is such a privilege and joy to know each of you!  You are very special to me and I thank you for your great love, tremendous encouragement, many prayers, and continued support.  We still need two elementary teachers (Grade 2 and Grade 3) for the elementary school at YISS next year.  The expansion construction project continues to move forward and should be ready by May or June.

Love, Gregg