The morning the EPIK teachers were supposed
to leave was not the large heartfelt send off that I envisioned the night
before. The time that we were supposed to check out of the dormitory was in the
early hours of the morning. After going to bed later the night before, 6 Am
came much sooner than I expected. Time has a funny effect on you need more of
it, and the four hours of sleep seemed insignificant in combating my fatigue.
I made my way to the cafeteria, the cafeteria
where for the last week would be one of the few places we could all be together
at the same time. Most of the people I had gotten to know were already there,
dressed in their best dress clothes and unusually quiet. Today would be the day
we were finally separating, going on our own to unfamiliar locations in an
unfamiliar country. Our only contact and form of assistance would come from our
co-teacher’s. Some of who were teaching
for the first time and just as inexperienced as us. Like anywhere in the world,
first impressions were the important impressions, and with us having to rely on
our co-workers to help us out, making the best impression was our goal.
While meal time was usually spent with
discussion and laughter everyone was unusually quiet today. The mood was far
from somber but the active discussions were far less frequent than normal.
Everyone knew what was happening, where we going and how we would be separated.
We wanted to soak in the moment, to enjoy what time we had left.
After breakfast we began to pack the last
of our things, to prepare for the trip that lied ahead of us. The lobby was
packed with luggage and people gathering in designated areas that would lead
them to busses that would take us all over Korea
I walked outside with Moise and Hannah. We
were all talking about how we would see each other again and how we could never
truly be separated. A large group of our friends was already leaving to head to
Incheon, a city that would be at the very least four hours away from us. As we
walked to the parking lot to wave goodbye at the departing bus we saw our
friends smile and wave back at us. It lasted less than a moment but it was a
powerful and fitting way to bid farewell. Happy, excited and eager to see one
another again.
“I feel like we’re sending them off to war,” I joked
as the bus disappeared off in the distance.
Moise laughed. “Goodbye. See you later. We’ll
remember you even in death.”
“Gosh guys, we’ve only been here a week and it feels like we’ve been here much longer,” said
Hannah.
“I feel like I’ve known you guys forever. It’s hard for me to explain why. I don’t even think I have a real reason,” I said.
Soon it was time for our bus to depart. The
region where I was assigned was large enough to need several busses to take us
to our individual destinations. I left Moise and Hannah, hoping that our bus
would take a rest stop or break before heading to our co teachers and getting
one last chance to say goodbye.
“See you in a few hours,” I told Moise as I boarded my bus. Not sure if it was the truth or
not.
The bus left with a lurch and as I sat
alone on the bus staring out at the passing landscape, I thought back to all of
the experiences I have had so far, the people I have met and the strange
thought that only two weeks before I was still in my home, in my own bed
thinking about the adventure that was surely going to await me once setting
down in Korea.
The bus traveled on. I closed my eyes. For
a moment I was in another place of restful bliss.
A moment of peace before the real adventure
was to begin.
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