Dead on arrival

So the last two to three weeks have been quite an awesome and fast experience.  These are the days that I live for, for something that needs desperately to be accomplished, and I have to pool all of my resources together to get done while I travel around the globe.  I feel like such an international day trader.  You know like the ones in the movies where they show up in Germany, just getting in from India, with some sort of commodity that they need to trade and all of the cool devices to keep them updated on what is happening in the market.  It feels exhilarating to work like this!  So my journey home started with me saying goodbye to the amazing dance group that I hosted in Taiwan my last week on island.  It was the perfect way to end my chapter in Taiwan.  Having their doe-eyed faces looking at things that had become so every-day for me and for them to get the cultural experience of the beautiful people that live in Taiwan by living in their homes for a week and telling me about their experiences made me remember all of the amazing things that I'm going to miss about this island nation.  All of the dancers were all so amazing people as well and helped me be excited to go and represent BYU at the new job that I am undertaking.

So anyway, I left Taipei and got into Seoul, Korea in the afternoon.  I found a very comfortable bus called the airport limousine service (prices were actually very reasonable) and rode that to my hostel.  By the time I got  to the hostel it was already dark, but I was famished so I immediately left the hostel and got a bite to eat at a Kimchi restaurant.  It was very delicious!  After that I found a famous water canal walk-way that kind of acted as the median of one of the busiest streets in Seoul, except the great thing about this canal walk-way was that it was lower than the road about 100 feet and had such beautiful landscape.  You totally forgot that you were walking down one of the busiest streets in Seoul because you were distracted by the sound of the water as it rushed through the many water falls along the way.  It was a great way to spend Sunday night.  The next day I made sure that all of my stuff was packed away because I was leaving again that night.  Once that was finished I set off to see the National Palace which was a restored little village that surrounded the emperor's previous living quarters.  It was so gorgeous!  As I was taking pictures a group of middle school boys were going crazy over this American that was getting so close to them.  I thought I would entertain them a little and asked them to help me take a picture of myself with the background.  The picture didn't turn out that good but the guys really enjoyed it.

From Seoul, Korea I left at 10pm and arrived in Honolulu, Hawaii on the same day at noon.  I am now not only a world traveler but a time traveler as well!    My cousin's boyfriend Tyler picked me up from the airport with his native friend and they drove me to my hotel room.  This place was actually a resort that I got.  Everything was so expensive in Hawaii so I figured if I have to go big I might as well go all out.  This place actually even impressed the native that was with me.  It was right on this mini peninsula off the north shore of Oahu that overlooked what was called the Paradise Bay.  It was absolutely unbelievable.  I was really excited when I got there.  That night I went with my cousin to the Polynesian Cultural Center and we had a blast watching the shows and eating the food there.  The next morning was so perfect.  I woke up with the sun and had some light breakfast and I went right out to take a kayak into the Paradise Bay.  The sun was out and the weather felt so nice.  I was trying to reach a little island that I never got to but I took some time to just drift in the ocean with the gorgeous background and just listen to the sound of the ocean.  I didn't want to leave Hawaii that day, but I had to.  Later on Leslie drove me to Waikiki to go shopping and then I was off on a plane again.

I arrived into the Phoenix airport the next morning and my mom was there to pick me up, but my traveling was not finished.  No sir, the moment I got home I unpacked, an repacked my bags to immediately head up to Utah because I had to renew my teaching license and I had to go to Utah to do it, plus time was of the essence since I was starting my new in about 3 weeks.  I quickly looked at some quotes for car insurance for my new car and set it up with insurance before leaving.  By about 5:00pm I was on the road again with my Mom.  Utah was just a surreal little visit.  I got up to Salt Lake and got done all of the little logistical things that I could to make taking this new job to go smoothly.  In the meantime I got to see just a couple of friends that I hadn't seen in over two years.  I felt really bad that I couldn't see everyone but I was happy that I got to see the ones that I did.  Utah is such a special place to me and I'm sure I will traveling up there more frequently since I live closer now.

Once I got back from Utah I had a couple of days to organize the rest of my stuff and now I'm here in Yuma.  I've been here for a couple of days, trying desperately to plan for this next year teaching a subject that I love but that I haven't done for about three years and also trying to find a place to live.  This place already has started to feel like home.  You know that feeling that you are in the right place and that everything is going to work out?  I've had lots of those little tender mercies just within these last couple of days that have made me grateful to be able to have the gift of revelation and the spirit who has directed me in so much of my life.  With so many things in my life that don't feel like I'm doing very good, when something happens that does feel right I have to rejoice in it.  This Sunday is my Ebenezer for this new area.  I already feel overwhelmed in this new area and this new job and I know that I won't be able to be successful in this job unless I have divine assistance.  Doing this job is going to require all of me, including the part of me that requires the Lord's help.  I know that I need to be vigilant with my scripture study and prayer more than ever because I know that these students really need the support that comes from having music being an important part in their lives.