Rated PG 13 - breasts and butts involved

Ok, I realize that I will probably get more viewers on this post than any others, but I am desperate for more followers on my blog! Just kidding - well kinda!

Anyhow, I am shocked that the calendar in my study says MARCH. Where did the beginning of the year go? Christmas break was fulfilling, but too short, then school started up again. One set of my parents moved to China in February and I was able to cross one more thing off my bucket list. I loved watching history come alive while trodding on the steps of the Great Wall of China. This is a place where thousands of Chinese men lost their lives building the wall in harsh conditions and under cruel political power! The wall is mammoth and reaches as far as the eye can see (which isn't too far in polluted Beijing). Nonetheless, it was an incredible time with my mom and step-dad as we completed many touristy things and I was able to fit in some professional development on the weekend to boot. Many more China adventures to come.

More recently - today was an unusual Saturday.

I woke up and begrudgingly headed to the doctor. My last visit to the hospital warranted some unfortunate news about finding a lump in my breast. This is the second lump that has been found in a year. Last February I was living in Bolivia and had to navigate through a sea of inefficiency and Spanish medical terms. It was a time of anxiousness and pain with mammograms and other invasive procedures. I was less than thrilled to find out I had to repeat the procedure here in Korea. Let me tell you, there are many things that Koreans do well, but GENTLENESS is not one of them.
All the women out there are shaking their heads as they KNOW where I am headed with this.....gentleness + mammogram = really uncomfortable procedure, but bearable with a glass of wine! Now, think of what it would be like going in sober, getting mangled by Cruella deVille AND having a language barrier added to the mix! Needless to say, there was cursing, stomping of feet, tears and more cursing!

I was fortunate in that after the procedure the results were to be sent down to the doctor within an hour. So I headed to my home away from home (ie. Starbucks) and did some major praying. I wasn't even sure what I was praying for. I have been healthy for most of my life and have had very few medical scares. Then I started to wonder if my clean bill of health is one reason why my faith is shaky at times...did I need to get sick to thoroughly trust God? I began to wonder and panic.

In the doctor's office she told me that I have a category 3 cyst. She saw the clueless look on my face and proceeded to explain. She said that it means that my cyst is 'probably benign.' I leaned in little closer to her and said in all seriousness, "Doctor those are two words that should never be used in the same sentence." She laughed and said, "No it means that there is less than 5% chance that the cyst will be cancerous, but that we should follow up in 6 months. I gulped as I thought about having to endure the booby-metal-vice-grip and then remembered that I had just received good news. "So you are saying that I have nothing to be worried about?" I asked. "Yes, you have nothing to worry about."

Feeling very relieved, I decided to go for a hike on my favorite mountain behind the school. If you have read any of my previous posts, you know that this is quickly becoming my place of solitude, my muse for writing and my anvil for embarrassment! I started my hike and quickly realized how muddy the trail was. I couldn't recall rain any time recently, then I remembered our unexpected snow day earlier in the week. Not paying much attention, and feeling drunk with good news, I quickened my pace. As you can expect, I took one step and then fell flat on my butt! That wouldn't be much of an issue, if that was where it stopped. Because it was muddy and due to the fact that I was hiking a mountain with a slope, I began to SLIDE down the mountain. Not slowly so that I can stop myself, but quick like SNOT so that my arms and legs are flailing!

Again, let me paint a picture for you. I am a WAYGOOK in Korea...similar to GINGRA in Spanish or FOREIGNER in English. I stick out like a sore thumb. I try not to let that stop me living life overseas, but I am a proud person and I can only handle a certain amount of stares! Once I finally stop tumbling, my butt is sore, my breasts are bruised and my ego is terribly wounded. I sit on the muddy ground and I just start whimpering. I am not crying...no, too many tears had already been shed that morning, I whimper! I thought about my day, I began to lick my wounds and feel sorry for myself and then I have that EPIPHANY.....THIS IS LIFE!

Bottom line - Life is hard sometimes! You are going to have those days where you feel confident about climbing the mountain, but an obstacle gets in your way. Those obstacles might be things you can merely jump over and continue along your merry way, but other times those trials are going to get you soiled and you might land on your butt. When that happens we have two choices: stay there and wallow, or get up, dust yourself off and hike up that mountain anyway! So, I did just that....I wallowed for a bit, then I wiped off as much mud as I could and continued to hike....Boy, was I a sight!

On this Saturday night I am reflecting on my day, the previous weeks, the past three months and I can say, sometimes being sore is a good thing!