By Korea.net Honorary Reporter Abigail D. Albino
Photos = Abigail D. Albino
It all started with a foreign telephone telephone telephone I received terminal March.
My manful individual raise wrote my telephone number on a “House for Rent” poster exterior our onetime habitation close downtown Davao City inwards the Philippines. I didn’t sign upward to hold upward an agent for the house, but since we’re family, I had to have got calls from people who were interested inwards renting it. I assumed it was a non-Filipino at the other cease of the line when he asked me inwards English linguistic communication nearly the rent together with number of bedrooms. By the cease of the call, he said, "Ne, ne," which made me assume that this individual mightiness hold upward Korean.
Off I went to our onetime trouble solid inwards Matina, a neighborhood inwards Davao City, thinking that this mightiness hold upward some other potential renter that would dorsum out due to this or that reason. Our trouble solid is quite old, together with this is where my siblings together with I lived all our lives. I yet sort of miss this house, but nosotros were at nowadays living inwards a novel together with smaller habitation somewhere far from downtown.
I met Pastor Lee root together with he introduced me to Pastor Kim together with his wife. With them was a Filipina who was fluent inwards Korean. I showed them around the trouble solid together with discussed what they wanted with it. There were times that they would speak inwards rapid-fire Korean inwards forepart of me. They have got been looking for a trouble solid inwards Davao City for 4 days inwards the sweltering weather, which would ambit 35 C on most days. They had to create upward one's hear at nowadays because the pastor together with his married adult woman would have got to boot the bucket dorsum to Korea the adjacent day.
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| Pastor Kim (left), his married adult woman Gumyoun (second from left), Pastor Lee (third from left), Anna (fourth from left), their Filipina translator, together with the writer pose for a photograph exterior the house. |
I didn’t await anything. I cry upward it was a mixture of desperation, tiredness together with the watch that “this trouble solid volition do” that led made them come upward to the conclusion to sign the rental understanding immediately.
Over the adjacent few weeks, my household unit of measurement together with I prepared the trouble solid for the Kim family. We weren’t able to produce everything they asked because nosotros yet had to hold back for our manful individual raise to come upward habitation inwards June. I was e'er worried nearly how the Korean household unit of measurement would uncovering our house.
The 2 families root meet
Pastor Lee asked me to selection upward Pastor Kim’s household unit of measurement at the aerodrome because no i could assist them at that time. I was happy when I met Pastor Kim together with his wife, Gumyoun samonim, again, together with their iii kids. Their baggage filled upward the entire van, which made me cry upward that they were definitely going to alive hither for good. I was informed that they were going to alive hither for 5 to 10 years every bit missionaries. There were many Korean missionaries that came earlier them. Many of these missionaries have got lived inwards the Philippines for together with then many years that they’ve made quite a divergence inwards their respective communities.
I flora that my household unit of measurement together with their household unit of measurement have got sure enough similarities. They have got 2 girls together with i boy, spell our household unit of measurement also has 2 daughters together with a son. My manful individual raise needed to have got regular insulin injections, spell Pastor Kim needs to inject magnesium sulfate every i to 2 months. The eldest daughters inwards both families also wearable braces.
I had the feeling that everything would but autumn into place.
I believe the Kim household unit of measurement has been our best tenants together with then far. The trouble solid is e'er spic-and-span; I desire to boot the bucket dorsum together with alive at that topographic point again. When nosotros lived at that topographic point for 25 years, the trouble solid was e'er messy. We are a household unit of measurement of pack rats together with the trouble solid was e'er inwards abattoir no affair how oft nosotros cleaned it. I’m happy that our onetime habitation is beingness taken aid of past times novel tenants.
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| The Doromal-Albino household unit of measurement (left) together with the Kim household unit of measurement larn to alive together. |
Day-to-day life
The drive dorsum habitation from the aerodrome was interesting. We to a greater extent than oft than non communicated through Google Translate. I tried my best to empathize what they wanted to tell me. I knew it! I should have got hustled inwards learning Korean when I had the chance. Lesson learned: If yous have got the fourth dimension to larn a novel language, produce it at nowadays earlier it’s every bit good late.
We helped them settle inwards the house, together with left early on because nosotros needed to selection upward my sis at the hospital. Before nosotros left, they gave us a lot of presents: boxes of instant noodles, a musquito net, ballpoint pens that nosotros could also operate every bit a stylus, reusable shopping bags, a ceramic mug together with a tray stand. My pump but melted.
Pastor Kim sent me a message via Kakao Talk that the individual who would install the mesh had come upward to the house. I called the individual inwards accuse of it together with he said they’re but communicating with “yes” or “no” spell installing. The Koreans alone knew a petty fleck opf English, together with the same went for the Filipino who installed their internet, but -- howdy -- at to the lowest degree the mesh installation was a success!
We went to the trouble solid regularly because nosotros wanted to brand sure enough they could suit to their novel life inwards the Philippines. We helped them install a gas tank, uncovering an English linguistic communication tutor, together with also acquire a Canis familiaris that would guard the house. My woman raise told me that nosotros should e'er assist them because fifty-fifty if nosotros mightiness non know it now, helping them mightiness hold upward the telephone substitution for them to assist a lot of people, peculiarly the poorest of the pitiable hither inwards the Philippines.
Solving wellness issues
We commonly communicated using Google Translate. They would interpret their Korean phrases or sentences into English. I would interpret my English linguistic communication into Korean. Most of the fourth dimension it helps, but I actually needed to hustle upward with my Korean. I wanted to run into them halfway. As they learned English linguistic communication through a tutor, I also wanted to boot the bucket ameliorate inwards Korean.
Then i morning, Pastor Kim sent me a message to enquire if I knew a doctor. I said that my sis was a doctor. He asked what “treatments produce nosotros have.” I tried to enquire what were the symptoms. He said that he couldn’t elevator his finger, together with then off nosotros went to the trouble solid to watch what was going on. We were relieved that Pastor Kim was already beingness assisted past times their Filipino community leader, beingness taken to a local infirmary to acquire an injection. We told him that at that topographic point was a clinic close the trouble solid where he could acquire a nurse to produce it. It took some fourth dimension for both sides to communicate, together with Pastor Kim drew something similar this:
It took a spell for my sis together with I to empathize that the drawing meant “home service.”
My sis contacted an IV therapist who could come upward past times the trouble solid every calendar month or together with then to assist Pastor Kim with his medicine.
My sis also did a quick banking company gibe upward on their son, since he had gotten sick for 4 days. His fever was gone, but he would acquire rashes each fourth dimension he took a bath. She wrote a prescription together with instructed him to have got i tablet at nowadays together with some other i earlier bedtime. The man child but gave her a mischievous grinning which made my sis realize that the kid had no watch what she was talking about. We bought the medicine together with dropped it off with them earlier going dorsum habitation ourselves.
I was actually touched because whenever we’d nation goodbye to them, they would all walk together out of the trouble solid together with bow to us every bit nosotros left.
The hearts of my household unit of measurement would melt with such thoughtfulness together with respect. We don’t have got such customs hither inwards the Philippines, together with then it’s novel to us.
All those times that Google Translate saved us or failed us, the sign language, the yeses or nos, the switching betwixt English, Korean, Tagalog together with Bisaya, together with the drawing of pictograms inwards the promise that people who speak unlike languages could empathize each other: I have got at nowadays really witnessed that there’s indeed dearest together with aid with people, no affair which province they came from together with no affair how high the linguistic communication barrier may be.
The household unit of measurement that I've come upward to love
To Pastor Kim Jeongrak and his married adult woman Gumyoun, together with their kids Sung Eun, Eun Bin, together with Sung Bin, give thank yous you for coming into our lives. I am 100 pct sure enough that God is on your side wherever yous go. I pray for your health, security together with happiness every bit yous alive hither inwards the Philippines. May yous succeed with your missionary piece of occupation together with I facial expression frontwards to to a greater extent than experiences with you. From my household unit of measurement to yours, kamsahamnida!
wisdom117@Korea.kr
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