May Volunteering | 2 of 2

Me and Eunbi

While volunteering at the shelter, there were two little girls that I really doted on, Eunbi and Soyoung. Running around with these girls felt so natural. It even felt like I was playing with my own nieces. It was that comfortable. I will admit that the time I spent with these girls really tugged on my heartstrings. I started thinking that I could have fun like that every day with my own daughter. Until that time, I'll just have to settle for afternoons with these girls, which is definitely the next best thing.

Eunbi's little sister, Dambi

Soyoung

When we were still at the shelter waiting for everyone to gather, I spotted Soyoung. Her hair was done up in a little bow and pigtails. When I saw her and the red-haired boy, I told everyone around me, "We're definitely gonna be best friends." At the park, Soyoung and I started playing a bit. Even though she didn't speak much English, we were still able to communicate. I started chasing her around and I would catch her. Then I would pretend to be scared of her and run away. While she was chasing me, a bunch of the other kids saw and then they all started to corner me. I ran around for a good 15 minutes and then I was completely exhausted. It was worth it though, because I was able to gain that relationship with Soyoung. On the way back to the shelter, we walked hand in hand the whole way. Even though our hands were clammy with sweat, she didn't let go once.

Eunbi will always be special to me because she was the first girl that I talked to. When we were walking to the park and things were still awkward, I grabbed her hand. She looked at me surprised, but I could tell that she was happy. She was wearing this adorable panda jacket and she showed Markus and I how it worked. When she started to feel warm she took off her jacket and I gave it to Markus to hold. She loved that and started calling him "servant" in Korean. I was the "queen" and she was a "princess". Later, Jeff joined us and he became "poop pig", a bit mean but kinda funny. I loved that we were the royalty and all the guys were some kind of horrible thing.

I seriously, loved these girls. They were so sweet and so much fun. I feel that even though most of these children go through something traumatic, they are still able to be kids. It makes me really contemplate a lot of the things I complain about. Even though they've had to deal with something difficult in their life, they don't let it affect them. It's really something admirable and amazing. It's really tempting to stay in Korea longer, just so that I could see them more. It's moments and experiences like this that make me want to stay in Korea and never leave.