Refreshment - Staff Retreat, Cooler Weather, Encouragement!!

Last Monday (Labor Day in the USA) the YISS staff returned from Daecheon Beach (about 2 and a half hours from Seoul) where we enjoyed our annual staff retreat!  I wasn't able to attend last year and was delighted to be able to go this year.  What a great time of refreshment - both physically and spiritually!  We were at this camp setting on the beach and it was so relaxing and refreshing!  I was able to do lots of walking on the beach, on the beachwalk, and in the warm sea water!  I was able to sit and be alone to read and talk with the Lord!  I was able to spend time playing games of all kinds with my colleagues!
(I learned a new game "Ticket to Ride.")  I was able to enjoy some great fellowship and worship together with my colleagues!  I was able to enjoy some good food and work in the kitchen on clean-up detail, which brought back many wonderful memories of Dish Crew in the Joy-El kitchen! I was able to sit on the beach and read some books I brought along as well as the Bible! I was able to NOT use the Internet for almost three full days!!  I was able to enjoy some gorgeous weather and amazing sunsets!  It was just a delightful time!

Above are YISS staff members on Sunday morning

at the Staff Retreat during our time of worship! What

a special time we had together!

One of the many sunset pics I took from my spot on a bench at our camp site.  This is where I did a lot of my reading and thinking and talking out loud with the Lord!

Another favorite sunset pic of mine at Daecheon Beach!

I really like this one, too!

Staff enjoyed playing MANY table games!  Some

got very loud and boisterous - especially those playing

Risk and Charades, well actually - any of the games!

Another group involved in one of the games!

This is my little girlfriend, Shiloh Hale!

Shiloh always has an amazing smile for

me!  She enjoyed the retreat as much as

the staff did! :-)

One of the things I have always enjoyed doing when I am visiting a place anywhere in the world is to look for those who look like they would enjoy a group picture of their group.  I go up to them and ask if they would like me to take a picture for them.  This group of young men were so excited that I would do this!  Then they wouldn't let me leave until I allowed them to have their picture taken with me.  So much fun!

I am not real good at these self pics, but I decided to

take one on the Daecheon Beach.

I decided to roll up the jeans and walk in the sea water!  It was so warm and relaxing!  A man saw me and offered to take a picture of me so here I am!

On our way to Daecheon Beach we stopped at a Rest

Area for a potty break and snacks.  I did not notice 

the name of this coffee shop until two of my colleagues

showed me. They took this picture of me and I will not

comment! :-) 

______________________________________________________

Tuesday began a short week at YISS.  We began After School Activities on Tuesday and everything seemed to go well.  I have to say that I still have to smile as I continue to encounter those who just don't read what is sent to them! :-)  However, it gives me the opportunity to meet parents I would not otherwise. So we have completed our first week of After School Activities with very few problems.  One little girl in Grade 3 who just came to the school this year saw her friend come out of the swimming pool on Wednesday afternoon for his ASA.  Well, Rafa asked Khalid what he was doing.  He told her so she went home that evening and told her parents she wanted to do swimming after school on Thursday.  Rafa just showed up at the pool on Thursday at 3:15 with her swimsuit.  Mr. Linn noticed that she looked frightened and was just standing there staring at the swimmers in the pool. (What Rafa did not realize was that these elementary swimmers had registered for Competitive Swimming.  Rafa cannot swim!) Mr. Linn gave me a call and we got it all worked out.  We are just delighted that Mr. Linn caught Rafa before she got in the pool.  God was protecting all of us!

This past week we also continued our Pizza Lunch for new students to YISS.  We are still working on the new students in our first grade sections.  They are so much fun!  Once they have their "Welcome to YISS" Pizza lunch with the elementary principals, it is so much fun to see them later.  They are so quick to come up and give us a hug and smile and laugh with us.  The lunches are proving to be very effective.  I usually wear a long sleeved shirt and suit jacket so the kids don't usually see my bare arms.  Well, this past Wednesday I was wearing a short sleeved shirt and had my jacket off.  One little first grader gave me a hug after the Pizza lunch and then held on to my arm and looked up at me and said, "Mr. Garman, you are very furry!"  She had not seen my abundance of arm hair before! :-)

Some of the fun first graders at Wednesday's "Welcome

to YISS" Pizza lunch!  So cute!

Some more of the group on Wednesday! The little girl in red looked scared but she quickly opened up!

Mrs. Franck, Mrs. Birmingham, and Mrs.

Yoo welcoming the first graders to their 

welcome lunch!

Some of the cherubs preparing to eat their pizza!  Kids everywhere seem to enjoy pizza! :-)

________________________________________________

Another highlight of this past week was my visit to all three kindergarten classes!  The kids are soooo cute and they love when the principals come to their class.  All three kindergarten classes are studying leadership in their Social Studies unit.  This week's standard which was being taught was: Identify sources and purposes of authority in various setting (e.g. mayor, chief, ruler, principal, and teacher.

The kinder teachers invited Dr. Beeson (Headmaster), Mrs. Birmingham (Elementary Assistant Principal) and me to come to share with all 40 of the kinder cherubs about our role of leadership at YISS.  They are learning this definition of a leader: a person who shows the way for others. We all had a delightful time interacting with these beautiful children!  Of course, they all wanted to ask a question or say something!  It was so neat to be able to share with them concerning my role as a leader over the years but especially at YISS.  All three of us asked them how they could begin being a leader.  I was so impressed that they came up with some great ideas such as: listen the first time, be kind when others are mean, pick up trash in the room or cafeteria even if it isn't mine, and help a new student find her/his way.  I needed some encouragement that day and these kids gave lots of it to me.  In addition, the Daddy (he teaches in the HS at YISS) of one of cherubs told me that his daughter told him, "Mr. Garman is my best teacher.  He is so fun and funny!"

Seoul is finally having the kind of weather I love - nice cool mornings and evenings!!  And we have been enjoying some dry weather, too.  We have had so much rain over the summer that we were informed this past week that the soccer field may not be completed and ready until December.  It was supposed to be completed on August 20 and then October 1 and now in December! Please keep praying that it will be completed by then and the weather will stay nice so that is possible.

Next week we are starting an something that we did not know how it would go over, but the response has been overwhelming!  We are planning some mornings we are calling "Donuts with Dad" in the first semester for our elementary children and their Dads.  In the second semester we will have "Muffins with Moms."  From 7:30 to 7:50 AM Dads can come to the cafeteria to enjoy donuts, coffee or juice with their children in the various grades.  The response by Dads has been great!  They are able to drop their son/daughter off at YISS before going to their work place and spend 20 minutes with them and the principals.  I am really delighted that so many Dads want to do this!  Should be great!

Thanks so much for your continued love, encouragement, prayers, and support.  Please enjoy a great week!

Love, Gregg