Yesterday, I had one of the wierdest experiences of my life. I was sitting at the beach and this Korean man in his 40's came and sat next to me. He spoke excellent english and was telling me about how he was waiting to meet his friend for octopus. I couldn't figure out what his intentions were in talking to me, but decided intentions weren't important and that I should talk to him, regardless! I've been pushing myself to endulge in conversations with Koreans in order to better understand their culture and mindset.
So, he ended up telling me a 30 minute story about how he used to sell popsicles on the beach and how he was sooo happy and fulfilled doing it. He said he loved seeing the smiles on kids faces when he would hand them a popsicle. But then, one day, a gangster came up to him and yelled at him for selling popsicles in the same area as he was. He knew he was a gangster by the tattoos on his arms. How funny is that? Anyhow, he resisted, because he didn't want to give up the job he loved to much, so the gangster got really angry and said he was going to kill him, but he is a believer in peace, so he did not fight back. He did jump about 6 feet into the air to do a kung-foo move though. I'm not sure what that was all about... He said he ended up staring into the gangsters eyes until the gangster could see his own reflection in the man's glasses. He said that the gangster was so disgusted by his actions that he began to weep and burried his face into the popsicle salesmans chest, and promised him he would change his life from that point on. I kept thinking, is this guy for real? Is he telling me a present day parable?? What the heck!
Then, at the end of his story, he said some things to me about my life that stopped me in my tracks!! He knew how I was feeling, and what I have been experiencing in my personal life - good and bad, with details to prove it... and then he said, "You are in Korea for a reason, and things will work out. Just focus on your spirituality." It was really creepy. I'm not sure who he was, or where he came from, but I do believe it wasn't a coincidence that we met.
