Amanda Takes Off...

Friday night's taekwondo class was a test. We started with a lot of running, then some poomse (I need to work on my stances) and kicking drills.

It was a good class, but when we were changing in the closet, Crybaby asked me a funny question.

"아만다, 기분이 나빠요?" Amanda, are you in a bad mood?

"아뇨. 왜?" No. Why?

"조용했어요! 말 안했어요." You were so quiet! You didn't talk at all.

"심사 했어!" We had a test!

She just laughed.

After class, Master asked if I wanted to have some dinner and soju. Master, his wife, their children, Officer and I went to the restaurant where we met Good Man. On the way there I was holding Master's Daughter's hand. A very large truck passed as and I held her close to me and hugged a car to keep from being run over. At the very last moment she yanked free from me.

Oh my. God.

She ended up hitting her head against the very back of the truck while her mother and I were both yelling at her.

Oh. My. God.

Everything happened fast and in slow motion at the same time.

I scooped her up, she started bawling, the truck stopped, Master ran to talk to the driver, I reached up to touch her head, felt for blood, his wife yelled at me, "괜찮아?" Is she OK?

I felt no blood, no cuts. I nodded, "괜찮아! 괜찮아!" I started whispering to Master's Daughter, 괜찮아, 괜찮아.

The driver came around the back of the truck and talked to us, Master's Wife and Officer checked her head while Master explained what had happened.

I felt terrible and I couldn't even explain what happened because I was so freaked out. I was just clutching her and whispering, "You're OK, you're OK" over and over.

We got to the restaurant and I took her shoes off. We sat down, Master called her to the other side of the table. Her tears were already dry, not three minutes later. I looked at her, touched my head and mouthed, "괜찮아?" She grinned and nodded.

The owners remembered us and asked a) where I was from and b) where my boyfriend was. This time Master appeased them by telling them I was American and from Minnesota. The husband pulled out a little planner with a map of the US in it and made me point to my home state. The wife drilled me about Good Man.

We ate some delicious 닭갈비 and had some soju. I think poor Officer wanted to go home and I sort of felt bad. Since Master is her boss, she was basically being subjected to a wayshik while I was just enjoying the company of my Korean family.

At one point Master and I were chatting about Korean because I'm having a heck of a time with the relative clause. He was trying to explain it and we started talking about studying Korean in general.

"관장님, 작년 만났어요. 하지만 한국어를 말 할 수없었어요. 조금 긴장 했어요?" Master, we met last year. But I didn't speak Korean. Were you a little nervous?

Master and his wife both shook their heads and spoke at the same time. "아니요." No.

"그래요?" Really?

They spread their hands apart and Master said, while his wife nodded in agreement, "많이 했어요!" I was very nervous!

I laughed because I expected him to save face a little bit, but he wasn't afraid to tell the truth. He told me that he'd never spoken to a foreigner before. I'm sure if he really meant never or if he meant he'd never made a foreign friend. I know I'm the only foreign student he's ever had.

He said that his brother had called him and warned him that I was coming, so he had about five minutes to prepare for me.

For some reason I found that terribly funny.

Master said he speaks English well when he drinks, so perhaps he should drink soju before every taekwondo class. I laughed and shook my head and tried to say in Korean, "If you drink soju every day, your wife will not like me!"

"No, my wife likes you." She nodded.

"I know," I said. "But if you drink soju ever day...I think she won't like me." She smiled and nodded.

Master said, "I like soju, you like soju. I think you drank a lot in the US."

He thinks that? I shook my head, "No, Master, I only drink soju because I practice taekwondo."

"Huh?"

"태권도 연습하나까 관장님 만났어요. 만났으나까 소주를 마셔요!" Because I practice taekwondo, I met you. Because I met you, I drink soju.

We all laughed.

But it's true!