Timeout to reflect

As I reflect on those first two-and-half years as an English teacher in Korea, I can see that teaching was more or less a backdrop for other developments. I met Heather while going on vacation to the east coast of Korea, and we later became friends while she was in my class. Co-workers became close friends. The money I made was used to pay for vacations (and to pay off student loans).

I will say that I found teaching adults enjoyable for the most part. Seeing them struggle with the language made me sympathetic to their situation, which was a national perception that the only path to success went through English class. I used to think this was the biggest scam, and I was a part of it by making money off it. It is still a scam, although the need for English has been made more salient now that a top TOEFL score is required for university entrance in Korea.

I never felt like a great teacher, but I thought that I was doing a good job doing what needed to be done, which was to give students the chance to speak English. I was certainly inexperienced in terms of pedagogical knowledge, but again, I never expected this to be a long-term gig. As I left Korea in May 1998 with my new bride to move back to Canada, I wasn't sure what job I would have, but I didn't figure it would involve teaching.

As for Korea itself, my feelings were generally positive. I hadn't really learned the language beyond the basics, and I hadn't explored very much of the country. However, I became comfortable living in a foreign country, and I had made my new best friend for life -- my wife, Heather. My best friend in Korea who I wasn't sleeping with was Dan, and I became very close to people such as Brian, Rick, and Sara.

Of course, the ultimate reality of being an ESL teacher in Korea is that nothing is permanent. Most people spend a year or less in any one school. People come and go, and some of your closest buddies may leave, and you never see them again. But I was happy knowing that a few of those friends -- people like Dan and Brian -- would be moving back to Canada, too, and we could meet up there and re-live the good times in Korea.

But sometimes, when you think you're headed for a big change, life has a way of leading you back to where you started. As it turned out, my life in Canada did not mean the end of my career as an ESL teacher. In fact, it turned out that this was all just the beginning.