Thank God for the Promise of Spring!

Walking today on the way to Dongdaemun I saw something so surprising it took my breath away. Big waxy white petals were bursting out of buds on a magnolia tree. After such a long, cold, brutal Korean winter, my eyes were shocked to see such color! I've always loved spring in Korea and I'm happy that God's given me a second chance to fall in love with Korea again after I've said goodbye.

I know that spring is supposed to be the season of renewal and Easter but I've always wondered: Why is Christmas celebrated in the winter instead of the spring? Watching my pregnant co-worker get bigger and bigger over the past 5 months, it seems to me the faith it takes to carry a child all the way from conception to labor is somewhat similar to what a gardener must have waiting for tulip bulbs she has planted to sprout and bloom in April. Or what a farmer must have, literally betting his farm on the unseen crop.

It's this beautiful faith humans have in God's promise of spring that never fails to inspire me time after time. It's the irrational hope that better times are right around the corner. It's the untiring patience a parent/teacher has for the child whose "paint is not yet dry." It's the neverending search for the light of dawn in the very darkest depths of the night. It's the tremendous struggle to get up just one more time after we fall yet again. It's the painful longing for a Messiah over the centuries. It's the amazing belief that love really does conquer all.

Recently I sat/slept through BH Productions' Waiting for Godot peformed to celebrate the centenary Samuel Beckett's birth. The play hit a little too close to home for this playgoer. Here we have two adult men (acting like an old married couple) who are daily waiting for God or someone god-like to come through and make sense of their lives. Does any of this sound familiar? And to add even more misery to the depressing dish set before me, the only relief Beckett suggests comes from sleep or suicide!

Fortunately for my boyfriend and I, the agonizing wait is (somewhat) over. Our Spring has finally arrived in the form of word from Canada. I'm happy to announce that our application for permanent residency has been approved! They felt so strongly about our case that our interview requirement was waived. While we still have to pass medical and security clearances, the favorable forecast is that we will be allowed to live and work in Toronto sometime in the next 3-6 months. Even though this is a much longer wait than we had anticipated, we are still grateful to God, the Canadian officials, and the amazing support of our family and friends!

Thank God for the promise of Spring!