174) Still Got It

After about four months of working in the same school…5 days a week, I still get kids coming out into the hallway shocked to see me, a real live foreigner, walking down the hall. It seems like most kids recognize me by now, but on a daily basis I still see kids startled to see me apparently not recognizing me. So startled in fact that they have to drag a friend out to see me too.

Today I walked into a large public middle school for a meeting. I was with two Korean people from my company, and made a comment about how I was a bit concerned about the reaction I will likely get from these kids. Concerned because this is the age when kids are a bit less innocent, and a bit braver. This is also the primary age group watching the TV show I used to be a part of.

I stepped into the hallway just before class was let out, and when it did get out I had to leave shortly after. I couldn’t even look at the kids I was so embarrassed- there was about a 10 foot perimeter where everyone gathered and stared at me. First came the gossip to each other in Korean, and then came the English catch phrases, and then came the celebrity mob-mentality. Apparently some of those kids watched a lot of TV and one or some of them recognized me, which only made matters worse.

It is hard to be sympathetic (understanding) to Korean kids in these situations because of the way I grew up. But I have to remember not every one grew up (grows up) in a multi-cultural country where the site of different races is commonplace. I am always initially shocked and sometimes upset or frustrated by these situations until I remember how short the foreigner history is in this country. And at the same time it can also be pretty humorous and entertaining to draw that kind of attention.