Reflections

Today marks the beginning of my last week in Korea.  It is time to gather my impressions and reflect on the trip.  I have somewhat of a unique perspective as I grew up in Korea during the 1950s and 60s then returned in the Peace Corps in the early 70s.  I was away from Korea for 37 years after that.

Returning now, in the 21st century, is like stepping out of a time machine into the future.   Gone are the mud brick thatched roofed dwellings of my childhood, replaced by high rise apartment buildings reminiscent of a scene from "A Bee's Life".  The ox carts on the dusty roads replaced by networks of subways where droves of women in short shorts and heels and men who stepped off the pages of Esquire Magazine find their personal space in the crowd by never lifting their eyes from the cell phones in their hands.  Not once, since I have been here, has a stranger asked me how much I weigh or any of the other 20 or so personal questions that were daily fare during my Peace Corps days.

We used to travel across the country to Imshil to buy cheese from the Belgium priest there.  There was no where else to it.  Foreigners had trouble finding familiar foods.  Now you can stop at Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts, Baskin Robbins or KFC for your familiar food items.  You can even have McDonald's deliver.

But Korea goes much deeper than the glitzy exterior of K-Pop and plastic surgery.  A German friend compared Korea to Germany as two nations that came out of devastating wars and a troubled past to rise to the top in economic and social development.  While Germany has a past of shame to overcome, Korea was the exploited nation.  Both fought to overcome their history through hard work and dedication.  The Korean work ethic and desire to succeed are hard to match.  Children often go  from school to a private educational institution, or hogwan, then on to a music lesson or athletic  training session before returning home for dinner followed by homework.  The industrial revolution in Korea is often credited with the nation's current power status, but it was a hard and brutal revolution built on the bent backs and busy hand of young girls in sweat shops.  The human price was high.  It is still high.  Work and school stress is enormous.  Migrant workers from poorer countries often work 16 hour days seven days a week in sweatshop conditions.

There is a very humanitarian side to Korean society.  The religious groups are active in charity and social justice work.  Korean Protestant churches send more missionaries around the world than churches in just about any other country.    Others fulfill their mission at home.  One friend is minister to a small church in Inchon that serves many immigrant families.  I recently was with her when a group of Korean nationals from Uzbekistan had a day off from work and needed help navigating Seoul.  We ended up taking them to a local amusement park for the evening.  Nothing like an amusement park to light up the eyes of a child.  My friend's mother, a physician, started a clinic  for migrant workers that has ballooned into a variety of services including a shelter and a school.

We visited Catholic activists on Jeju-do and learned of their opposition and efforts to help local residents stop the construction of a new Navy base.  They are protesting on a combination of environmental and social justice or anti-military escalation issues.  I also visited a Catholic hospital in Seoul that is linked to an orphanage, a homeless shelter, and a home for disabled citizens.  The hospital serves all uninsured and otherwise needy individuals who would have difficulty receiving or paying for services elsewhere.

The Buddhist in Korea are also proponents of social and environmental justice.  What has been interesting to me, and this is only from my own limited observations, is that there seems to be little cooperation amongst the various religions even though their aims are similar, if not the same.

If social media is a reflection of culture than no reflection would be complete without attention
to television, Facebook, etc.  While my Korean is not always up to catching all the dialogue on TV I can make a few observations.  The issues related to prejudice, particularly towards individuals of mixed race, is often front and center in the media, but in a subtle way.  There is a morning reality series that follows several mixed families in thePhilippines.  The program highlights the joys and struggles, particularly of the Korean spouses, but in general has a very positive tone.  A recent Korean movie tells the story of a half-Filipino boy with an amazing talent as he competes in a Korean talent competition.  Prejudice is front and center in the story line.

A recent morning talk show did an interview with a young man who had lost an arm and a leg.  The hosts talked with him and his wife about their lives and their struggles.  It was a very frank and positive interview.

Soap operas have always been popular in Korea.  One now features an openly gay character.  He has a lot of struggles and (in my view) his character and story line need work, but it is a start.

There is a plethora of health and wellness material everywhere.  Food shows combine local culture and cuisine.  Talk shows feature body builders in their 80s and yoga instructors teaching the talk show hosts how to exercise properly.  Parks with plenty of outdoor exercise equipment are plentiful.

Being a foreigner is still an adventure in Korea.  There are lots of us now, but we are still a curiosity. I was asked by my hosts' church to give a talk on foreign missionaries.  That would not have been a stretch except that I had to do it in Korean (remember I was gone for. 37 years).  No sooner had I gotten past that than I learned that my hosts (members of Korea Home Stay) had been selected to be interviewed for a major TV network.  Needless to say their home stay guests were expected to be part of the interview.  I make my TV debut tomorrow morning.

I'm sure my remaining week will be equally exciting.  Stay tuned.