Soohee Oh / The final draft #2 / Tues 11-1

Another mother   "Hi!" An excited voice penetrated into my room; it was my new homestay mom, Ruth. She was very tall and seemed like she did not care about her appearance much. Scanning her from head to toe, I noticed a very short hair with a somewhat old pair of glasses, a pair of jeans and a red fluffy jumper. She took all my baggage and loaded them into her car. "It's freezing! Let me turn on the heat for ya" She pressed some button and the 10 year-old looking car began to blow some warm air onto my face. As soon as we arrived home, she showed me my room and the entire house. My room was preheated; and I felt she seemed like such a caring person, about not only her family but other people around her. It was one of the cold winter morning but she seemed to be someone who would spread her positive, confident energy into the cold air. She used to be a pastor and a consultant at a church. The reason why she decided to become a pastor is that she used to be a bad student at school but after she met God, she was completely changed. She began to take care of herself and of her people. Now I was one of her people. Even though I was not a Christian, she said many encouraging words to me whenever I was depressed or disappointed with myself. One day, I took a quiz at school. Since I was a typical Asian student, I was not satisfied with the score which was below 90. With a sad face, I got into Ruth's car after school. "You look so sad. What happened, Soohee?" said Ruth. Then I told her that I got a bad score on a quiz and could not get off of the result. "Well, when you think of your life as a big picture, one small mistake will not ruin the entire picture." After hearing this from her, I was in shock, realizing how unsatisfied and discouraged I was throughout my life. To me, it was a very simple yet powerful advice, making me rethink about my attitude toward life. I used to be someone who was never satisfied with what I had and what I got. However, I liked all the words she said - "You will have another chance" or "You got B on the essay? That's great!" These positive and encouraging compliments actually kept me going rather than depressing me. In the end of my life in Canada, the biggest change for me was the positive, tolerant mind and attitude towards me and other people around me. On the day I left her house for Korea, she gave me a huge hug and patted on my back. On the flight, I noticed a letter from her, saying she was truly glad to have me and believes I can do a good job in Korea as I did in Canada. Bursting into tears, I promised myself not to forget her and what I learned from her.