Catacombs
I finally went to the Catacombs prayer meeting for North Korea that my friend Cara kept talking about. It was either that or go to a housewarming party, but Joe insisted that I go to the meeting because he wanted to give me a history book about a famous Korean nationalist during the Japanese occupation and it was also going to be his last day here in Seoul before visiting his fiancé in the States.
Little did I know that these NK activists were going to be at the prayer meeting. When I saw a man with a mop of blonde hair and tall stature, I instantly knew it was  N o r b e r t V o l l e r t s e n, the German doctor and NK rights activist who I always read about in the news. I didn’t know that the prayer meeting was run by T i m Peters, who founded http://www.helpinghandskorea.org . I first saw him in the Seoul Train documentary and he was widely profiled by many publications including Time.
In a way I felt completely out of place at the meeting in the presence of former NK refugees and these activists who have sacrificed a lot for the NK humanitarian cause. Today’s meeting was more of a celebration for the recent release of a former North Korean refugee who was jailed in China for helping other North Koreans escape to South Korea. I was really humbled by his presence and all that he had to go through; yet he seemed strong and unwavering in his faith. There was so much to learn and ask but so little time.
I still don’t know if there’s any specific purpose in my life to help NK refugees in the long run. Honestly I wasn’t looking to do anything for the cause when I came here; I was learning to adjust myself, get situated with work, learn Korean and hang out with my family.  But one thing led to another and I found myself wondering how I got to this point of landing in tim peters meeting, of being asked to play piano and teach piano at Hanaro, the North Korean congregation, etc.
In hindsight, I’m really glad I came to Seoul without signing any contracts to work here. Working part-time allows me to experience and be involved in so many different things. I cherish my spare time to do things like study Korean, see my cousin’s kid in a taekwondo competition this weekend, and definitely spend more time at Hanaro or at Tim’s organization.  If I worked full-time, I know this would all be impossible to go to.
As it is I still find myself short on time blogging until 4:30 am….