February 18
The retirement ceremony for the principal of Chilwon was scheduled to start at 11:00am. I arrived at the school around 10:30. So, I went up to the 4th floor teacher's room and hung out for a bit with my co-teacher, Gyong Jin.
At 11:00 we headed for the auditorium. There were maybe 150 people there...all the Chilwon teachers, other principals from around the county, some of the principal's friends, his family and some Chilwon students.
As I walked in and went to sit down someone handed me a rectangular box. It was a really nice umbrella and they were being given to everyone. Someone told me that these were a present from the principal. Nice! It'll no doubt come in handy when monsoon season hits. There's another cultural difference...the person being honoured gives gifts to those honouring him or her.
Here's a picture I took at the end of the ceremony. The principal is the man in the center of the shot. Hard to believe he's 63 years old. Even close up he doesn't look much older than 40.
Principal Choi Dae Wan
The ceremony consisted mostly of various people going up on stage where the principal and his wife sat somberly. The person would present him with a gift as someone off stage read some words of appreciation presumably written by the person and that's it. Towards the end of the ceremony one of my friends, the head grade 6 teacher, Gyong Ock, beautifully attired in traditional Korean dress, read what sounded like a very tearful speech expressing gratitude and saddness. The ceremony concluded with a short speech from the principal and then a brief thanks from his son.
After the ceremony I had my friends gather for a picture.
Then, everyone headed out for a nearby restaurant for lunch which was paid for by, you guessed it, the principal.
I rode to the restaurant with my friend, Hyawn Yong. This was a sad day for more than just the principal...many of my friends including Hyawn Yong will be moving to new schools starting March 2 when classes resume. Teachers can only stay at one school for a maximum of five years and then they have to move. They can choose to move before that, but the ministry of education will force them to move after five years. I'll miss these people, but will stay in touch with many of them.
Although it was cool outside, I decided to walk back home by myself. As I walked along the banks of the Chilwon river and watched the storks, and cranes, I thought of my father, Romeo Emond, who passed away on this day 33 years ago. I dedicated the walk to him...I remembered him, wondered what he would say to me now, and thought about the journey from then to now, there to here. It's been a strange trip but I wouldn't exchange a second of it for any amount of money.
Speaking of money..since I've been here, something I guess I've known for a while has become even clearer to me. I'm motivated by only a few things....love, being needed and appreciated, and what I do for money. I'm not motivated by the money in and of itself, but by the work itself. I need to identify with what I do, I need for it to have some personal importance. Doing work that I don't personally value corrupts and eats my soul. Being overpaid for doing what I regard as useless "make work" just makes the poison all the more potent.
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