So I did the small bowel x-ray today. I had to drink this really gross version of a vanilla milkshake, it was thick and chalky, and then I had to walk around for 20 minutes while it went through my system and then they would take x-rays to see how far it was gone through my system. Overall, it took about 2 hours, which was great since originally they told me I would have to be there for 4 hours.

As I was getting the x-rays done and being poked by the technician I just kept thinking, "God, please let this be the last time I have to do anymore tests!" It's been nothing but doctors and medication for the past six months and I am just crossing my fingers that this is the end and I am finally moving past all this stuff. The Radiologist doctor said everything was looking great so far, and then he did the last set of x-rays and told me to call my doctor next week for the complete results. I am feeling optimistic about it, and am sure there won't be any unexpected or unwanted surprises this time around. I am still anemic, so I will keep taking my iron supplements and  doing regular blood tests while in Seoul. I will also have to take Prilosec for one year, and do check-ups to make sure everything is okay. Basically I have to monitor myself for another year, and stay away from aspirin (forever) and caffeine (for the most part).

I've been feeling really good these past weeks! I'm eating well. I have no stomach pains, and I just have a lot more energy. I feel like the twenty two year old young woman I am, and it is a great feeling. In the past six months I have learned not to take my health for granted, and it has made me very aware of how my body is doing. I make sure to do what I need to do to be healthy and have energy so I don't end up in a hospital again.

With fourteen days left it feels very surreal, like I have done this before (which I have), but I am in a different mindset this time around. I feel different, more ready this time around. I'm less anxious and worried than when I was supposed to leave in August. I feel a lot more grown up and sure of what I am doing. I'm super excited to take this challenge on and see what happens along the way. My last hurdle is packing. I have to figure out what else I can take out that I haven't already taken out to make each luggage 70 lbs. Just looking at them makes me exhausted so maybe I will wait a day or two before I try again.

I'm smiling in anticipation of finally beginning my journey in Seoul and just growing through each experience, interaction, failure, and triumph. I just want to soak everything in, and learn as much as possible about the language, culture, people, and me. Time seems to be flying by me these days and I know the 25th will be here in the blink of a  eye, but instead of fear or worry I feel excitement and happiness, and I know that no matter what I can do this, I will do this, and it will be a beautiful year in Seoul.

Be Blessed,
~Lola O.~

* Happy Dance*

I've been kind of moody lately, and so today I took a me, myself, and I day. I went and saw When In Rome, it was nothing special but it definitely was cheesy enough to lighten up my mood. I got some cavity inducing goodies and pizza from my favorite place to end the day with. Then, when I got home, I saw the express package on the dining table and it made me smile. It was my passport with the visa inside of it:).

I didn't go crazy with excitement, but it was just one of those happy moments we have in life. I don't know what my deal is but my excitement about going to Korea is of a very mellow kind these days. I don't go wild with excitement...it is more is a simmering kind of joy. Maybe, it is because I know what it is like when things don't go according to plan. Maybe this is my way of protecting myself from feeling the way I did in August.

I don't have the answer, I just know that this time around it feels different. I feel different; as if there is a certain bittersweet maturity this time around. Maybe, that is why I am waiting to buy my ticket till after I see my doctor next week. I just feel like I have to wait till after I see him to take that next step and make it all real and final. I guess maybe I'm a little scared things will get screwed up again that I am limiting my excitement. Who knows...

Well, I have my visa, I am 98% packed, and the last thing I have to do is buy my plane ticket to Seoul for this dream to become a reality. I am planning to leave the night of Feb.24th so I can get to Seoul the morning of Feb.26th. The time difference makes it feel like I am on this epic voyage, even though the journey is about 18 hours.

Can't really say I am looking forward to being on a plane for that long, but hopefully since I am leaving at night I will just sleep for most of it. We shall see...

Only 26 more days left before a new chapter in my life begins...I'm looking forward to it with a smile and an open-mind/heart.

Be Blessed,
~Lola O.~

Originally posted on my Six Months Till Korea blog, but I thought it should be shared with a wider audience. Enjoy:)

One of the main reasons I write my thoughts down is so I can reflect on them in the future, but even more importantly to see how far I have come and how much farther I need to go. This week has been a week of reflection, dreams, chances, but more importantly it has been a week of living and enjoying the moment.

I tend to wear my thinking cap way too much, and can get wrapped up in my head without seeing what is really going on in my life. I made a promise to myself that 2010 is going to be my year, my season, my time to shine and bloom, and I am doing my best to stay true to myself and to keep that promise.

Maybe it is just me, but it felt like for a long time I was just existing in life and not really living it, not letting myself enjoy it for all its flaws and wonder. I always thought I had to be someone other than the person I am. Always trying to change myself for the better, when sometimes it was more about accepting myself than changing me. I can smile now when I say that, because I am finally becoming the woman I want to be, and doing it in my own way and in my own time.

Everyone of us has a journey to take, and mine has taken me in different directions on the way to where I am now. I don't know what the future holds but I know I am excited to live my life going towards it. I think it all comes down to how you see yourself, and how you want the world to see you. That should be your choice and only yours to make. I keep thinking about my favorite Thoreau quote about living your life the way you have imagined it to be and it is so true.

This is your life, and as far as I know we only get this one chance to live it. So why live a life you don't want, a life you don't love? One day we will all return to the earth, and I for one don't want to be tangled up in regrets upon regrets. I'm 22 years old, and for the first time in my life I feel in sync with myself as far as who I am now and who I want to be in the future. I understand myself better. Accept myself with every flaw, scar, and beauty inside of me.

When I got into college I had a plan for how I wanted my life to be, but I am realizing that it wasn't necessarily me following my dreams, but more of me following the safe path to success. I don't regret the path I chose, because it has helped me get to this point in my life, and I have met wonderful people along the way, and have had opportunities that shaped me into the present version of myself.

I feel comfortable in my own skin, and even in those moments of doubt and insecurity I know that I am going to be just fine because like my mom says, "It is well with my soul." We all stumble, we all fall, but we all have to remember to pick ourselves back up and take it one step at a time, one moment at a time, and one day at a time. Living is about choices, leaps of faith, and chances. Sometimes we wait too long to do something that we miss out on it entirely.

It always comes down to fear; the fear of rejection, the fear of failure, the fear of pain, the fear of everything and anything you can imagine. Fear is like a plague on the human soul. It crushes our spirits, steals our dreams, and leaves us broken. Fear is friend to no one, and an enemy to all, but for me I am realizing that fear will always be there and it is up to me to overcome it, and live the life I have imagined. It is never and easy thing to overcome fear, but it is as necessary as breathing.

Over two years ago, I decided to not go straight to law school after graduation, and instead to let myself explore what else life has to offer. My family wasn't exactly excited about that decision, but they supported me and have always supported me. Something I am deeply thankful to them for. It was scary changing course like that, but it felt right, it still feels right. I was walking along a path that wasn't clear and felt more like a burden than a gift. Anyone that knows me, knows that when I make up my mind about something it rarely changes.

So deciding not to apply for law school  was a big deal, but it was the best decision I could have made for me. I was young, I am young, and I had barely experienced what life has to offer outside of a classroom. There is so much to see, so much to do, that it makes me tremble with all those endless possibilities. It feels right to go to Seoul, to travel outside of my comfort zone and give myself this year to bloom. To stretch myself, and test my limits away from the comforts I have now.

Sure I am scared, but even that fear is a beautiful thing. Like Eleanor says, "we must do the things we are afraid to do," only then will we ever know what we are capable of. If we all stay in our little boxes we will never know what is beyond those cardboard walls. Going to Seoul is a chance to explore more of the world while discovering more of me. Going to Seoul is a choice that will take me down a new path and lead me towards another. I'm excited to be doing this, to be making one dream into my reality.

But for me it is not just about going to Seoul, it's about being the young woman I want to be. This quotes sums it up best:

There is an inner beauty about a woman who believes in herself, who knows she is capable of anything that she puts her mind to. There is a beauty in the strength and determination of a woman who follows her own path, who isn’t thrown off by obstacles along the way. There is a beauty about a woman whose confidence comes from experiences; who knows she can fall, pick herself up, and move on. -Unknown-

Years from now I don't want to regret not saying what was in my heart, not traveling to places I dreamed of seeing, and I don't want to regret not living the life I have imagined for me. I was thinking yesterday about my future and where I see myself years from now. I kept thinking about what exactly am I going to do for a living in the future. I always wanted to practice law, and it is still my dream but there is a part of me that is still searching for that career that feels like it was made just for me.

There is so many possibilities in this world, so many places we can go, and so many things we can do, that I worry that I will get lost in the choices and never find the one for me. Before, I thought success was measured by the amount of money I would make, but as I got older I realized that success is defined by me and no one else. Success for me is not about money, but the way I choose to live my life. I know I want to help people like me, people searching, people drifting, people who are lost, and people who come from fragmented families like me.

I know I want to help others discover themselves, and make their own dreams a reality. I know I want to do something and be someone that inspires others to live their life the way they have imagined it to be. I know I want to be the advocate for those whose voices are silenced. I know I want to leave a legacy of positive change, and inspire people to lift their voices, and use their bodies to help those that cannot. The problem is that even though I know this much, I have no idea how to make that into a career for me.

I've always felt my calling was law, and in a lot of ways I still do. The question then is what kind of lawyer should I be. I have been thinking a lot lately about being a human rights lawyer and focusing on helping the youth whether in domestic cases or international ones. I've always advocated and looked out for the people around me, and I feel like my voice could be the voice they need. But then, there are so many other careers besides law that I could be the one for me...

I don't know, these are just some thoughts racing circles inside of me. I'm at that point in my life where it is  feels okay to feel this unsure about my future, and to get a little lost along the way, because I believe with all my heart that one day in a moment all will be revealed to me. I just have to continue living my life and letting my footsteps lead me closer to where I am supposed to be.

I'm sharing all of this because I know there are other people out there, who like me are trying to figure out their place in this world. Who are beating themselves up for being lost, when they should remember that sometimes you have to get lost in order to find and be found. We are always changing so don't hold yourself back, take a deep breathe and jump. Jump, and let yourself go...

I remember  four months ago how miserable I felt having to wait six more months before I could finally leave for Seoul. In the past four months there have been a lot of obstacles thrown my way, but I have made it this far and I know I will make it through the next two months and finally get on that plane and leave for Seoul.

Now, I am feeling more antsy about getting everything together as far as my NOA and visa stuff goes. My recruiter said SMOE won't be sending out the package with all the necessary information till the end of January. I just don't understand why they like to cut things close, but I am just going to be patient and hope it gets here earlier than that. I would like to book my ticket by the beginning of February, and have everything ready to go.

I just keep smiling when I think about going to Seoul. It feels good to finally be starting something just for me, and doing it all on my own for the most part. I'm not really sure what the future holds but I am looking forward to finding and creating it bit by bit, day by day.

Time seems to be winding down these days, but I am not planning on taking it for granted. I want to keep practicing Korean everyday, and learning useful phrases/vocab so I am not as flabbergasted when I get there. I feel a lot more prepared to do this, and don't have the same anxieties or fears I had in August.

This extra time has really made me appreciate everything I have, and realize that we get one chance at life so we should make the most of it. I don't want to spend my life dreaming of doing things without ever trying to make them a reality. Being sick has a way of opening your eyes and mind to how fragile life is. Which is why I want to take advantage of every opportunity and make my life the way I have imagined it to be.

That journey starts with Seoul, and who knows where life will take me after that chapter ends. I for one am excited to finally begin!

I wish all of you a happy and blessed New Year. May 2009 come to a great ending and lets make 2010 a year of opportunities, great health, new beginnings, laughter, and lots of happiness!!!

Be blessed,
~Lola O~

P.S...You need to watch this drama is you are not already tuned in. Apduy made a great fan mv to my favorite OST track:)