Final Reflections

When I look back at pictures from the six months I spent in South Korea or see Facebook updates from friends who are still there, I feel a world away and yet, in my heart, so close. I can easily imagine happily living there again, just as I could imagine living in Japan or Ecuador or Brazil again, but not permanently because Canada is my home.

And so South Korea, for me, is a place that I have lived in, studied in, worked in, travelled around, been frustrated with, loved, misunderstood, experienced, analysed, misinterpreted, photographed, scrutinized, appreciated, and through it all, shared with others. It is a place that my heart will always nostalgically long for – a place I will always look forward to visiting.

Photo credit: Denise Lipscombe

Returning Home

Two weeks ago, I returned to Canada to start a new job, not because I couldn't have found a job in Korea, but simply because Canada is my home and since last summer, before I even left to Korea, I had be craving the comforts of home and the peace and stability of a less transient life. Well, I've got the comforts of home, but my life is still in transition!

I spent a day visiting family in the Okanagan and even squeezed in a trip to the ski hill with my uncle, before moving to Vanderhoof, British Columbia and starting my new job as Project Leader for Katimavik (a national youth development and community service organization). I appreciate at least having my own room, even though the house is far from quite. The day after I started work, the group of ten Canadian youth moved into the Katimavik house that we will share for the next three months. My job will be to manage the budget, ensure a safe environment in the house, facilitate workshops for competency development, and liaise with the volunteer work partners and community members. It is a lot of work and intense at times, but it is fulfilling.

Although I have been adjusting to a new job and a new community, 15 hours north of my home town, I have still come home. And I had been hoping to take on another contract after this one, wether in Vanderhoof or another Canadian community, but just three days after I started this job, we got the news that the Canadian government has cut the funding for Katimavik and it will not be continuing past the end of June. I hope that someday, it will regain the funding as it is so beneficial for the youth involved, the communities they live in, and for the broader Canadian society. So for now my job hunt begins again.