Faith in Leaping

So we’re scared. It’s okay. All the best things start out that way. -Jaron and the Long Road to Love, “Faith in Leaping”

In about 12 hours, I’ll be on the first flight of my (long) journey to South Korea. I’m obviously nervous but also very excited! It’s a little hard to believe this is all finally happening. Most people don’t know all that I’ve done to get to this point, so I wanted to take a minute to explain the blog title and how I got where I am now.

First of all, the title comes from the song “Faith in Leaping” by Jaron and the Long Road to Love. If you know me, you know that I’m all about music and lyrics. I always knew I wanted a blog with a title from lyrics, but all of the others I thought of were already taken. I finally remembered this title and immediately realized how perfect it was. Since I decided to do this, it seems like all I’ve done was have faith in leaping, which is, to me, a bit different than a “leap of faith.”

Last April, I decided to move to South Korea to teach English. Little did I know, that was only the beginning of decisions. Hagwon or EPIK? Should I stay in my beloved Chicago while going through the process or move back to North Carolina with my mom to save money? The company I was at for a couple years gave me an ultimatum that pretty much made that decision for me. I immediately decided to move in with my mom at the ripe old age of 29 to save money. I never would have been able to save money and pay off all my debt (except student loans) without moving home. It was certainly a risk – a leap – but I never doubted the decision.

Without going into all the long details, everything else just fell into place perfectly. I’ve never had a lot of luck in my life. Once I decided to go the EPIK route, I knew there was no guarantee that I would be accepted. In fact, I was pretty sure I failed my interview and was already looking into hagwons as my plan B. What if I made all these sacrifices, and they didn’t pay off? I kept waiting for something to go wrong, but I always had a plan B, C, D, etc. Still, I always knew this was the right step for me. It’s already been a long journey, but I’m lucky to have family and friends that have been so incredibly supportive. I guess that they, like me, just have faith in leaping.