Life Update

Well, it has been a while since I have posted on this blog. I know in my last couple blogs I have promised things about Korean literature; however, this post is still not about that. Instead, I thought I would give you an update of my last few weeks and what is coming up for me.

The past couple weeks have really been a test of my endurance and patience. My wrist has been hurting again. However, this time, the pain is more than it has ever been before. The past 10 days especially has been more pain that I have experienced. As a result, it has been very tiring and frustrating. I have not been able to get as much work done because of the pain. In fact, this past week I was only able to do schoolwork two out of five days because the last three days of the week the pain was just too intense. Instead, I had to have other teachers and some students help me type. Thankfully, I have wonderful colleagues and students who are more than willing to help me when I need it. That doesn't make it any easier pain wise at least, but it is nice to know that they are willing to be a blessing to me.

The good news is that I have scheduled a doctor's appointment for when I will be back in Iowa in June. This doctor's appointment will hopefully be the appointment where the doctor says, "You can have surgery." When I made the appointment, I checked how soon after the appointment I would be able to schedule surgery. Based on what the nurse said, I should be able to schedule surgery within the next week or so. That time frame will allow me to have surgery and two follow-up appointments before returning to Korea in August. If I do need physical therapy after surgery, there is a good possibility that I will be able to do it by myself. I would still be recovering from surgery when I got back to Korea; however, it will be a lot better than it is right now. And, I know that I will have plenty of people willing to help me since I will just be recovering from surgery.

In the meantime, I am taking some steps to try to reduce the pain I am in right now. I have switched medications to one that is possibly stronger and lasts for longer. Hopefully, this will make a difference in the pain. I have also bought a new computer software that will type whatever I speak. It is called Dragon Speech Recognition software, and I am using it to compose this blog post. My blog posts may not come with any greater frequency; however, my excuse will no longer be wrist pain.

My prayer request in the midst of all of this is for strength and endurance until June. There are only three months until my doctor's appointment; however, it feels like these next three months will last forever. The last three months of the school year always fly by, and I'm sure that this year will be no exception. Until the end of the school year comes, though, I have a lot of work to get done. The English teacher always has plenty of typing and writing to do. While some of the changes I am making will certainly help reduce the stress on my wrist, there are still some things that I will have to do by myself. But more than just praying that the pain would go away, I want you to pray that I will be able to get through the pain with a good attitude and stay focused on God. Pray that I will learn what God wants me to learn through this experience, and that I will stay focused on him and not on my pain. The pain really walloped me this week, and part of it was because I had a hard time staying focused on Him. If I can stay focused on God, then that will make things better, even if pain does not go away. More than anything else, I want God to be glorified through this trial and struggle in my life. I want people to look at my life and say, "She is handling this trial with grace, and I hope that I can handle trials like that in the future." If that happens, then I will feel like God has used this for a good purpose.

On a brighter note, my spring break is coming up next week. For spring break, I am heading to Thailand with my two roommates. It should be a fun, grand, and glorious time! Don't worry; there will be a blog post and pictures coming afterwards.