Last night, in the middle of shoveling food in my mouth, I told my host mom that I would be happy if she served me the same rice and special egg omelet side dish combo for breakfast every day. And, of course, I woke up for my second day of school with just this very thing on the table - plus more side dishes!
When I went to deposit my shoes in "my" cubby (aka Andrea's old shoe cubby), I noticed that they had replaced the name placard bearing her name to one with mine. Just this tiny gesture made me feel a little bit more like a part of the school.
The day passed without anyone showing any willingness to let me observe their classes. Like the day before, I spent over six hours loitering about the Teachers' Office, mustering up all sorts of energy and mental exercises to stay awake.
Although I had done nothing particularly taxing, I was exhausted when I got home. I walked zombie-like back to our apartment, and slowly sank down on a chair in my bedroom not understanding what to do next.
Before I could formulate a decisive thought, Seoyeon, my younger host sister, knocked lightly on my door and came in bearing this super tasty drink. The concrete cement that my face had turned into over the course of the day warmed at the thoughtful gesture, and cracked into a slight smile seeing the cute, color-coordinated tray.
Enjoying this milk + strawberry yogurt drink constitutes my last memory before I passed out for another three-hour nap.
When I woke up, I waded through the contents of both suitcases and gave everything its temporary home. I got to the bottom of one suitcase, and found this letter embedded there. I was ecstatic! And then I choked up seeing the careful cursive of my mother's handwriting. I didn't touch the letter - letting it rest where it was - as I kept my hands moving, folding clothes, patting the creases out of my blazers, and lining up the seams of pants and jeans.
And then - as if meeting her for a few brief seconds - I took the envelope, held it up to the light, and savored the feel of its unopened contents. I've been trying to convince myself that I am not homesick but this letter slowly cracked that facade; slowly, because I am still in a whole lot of denial about just how much I miss my family.
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