I'm really not sure how to start this blog. As many of you know I have wanted to live in another country and teach english for a long time now. This dream of mine started about 4 years ago while I was a college student.
One very late drunken night I came across Shawn Matthew's Korean Life Blog korealife.blogspot.com/ .
I read the ENTIRE thing in one night, all the archives, everything. I knew that night that I wanted to do this. I wanted to go overseas and experience all the craziness he did. I could tell it was hard, I could tell he struggled, but he always fought back and tried to stay positive about everything. He also wrote a book about his experiences. I bought the online version and read the entire thing in one night. The book was a little more candid about his struggles before he moved to korea. But damn if this guy didn't hang tough and work through all the difficulties. Eventually he got tired of Korea and moved to China to continue teaching. This guy is my inspiration to follow my dreams, no matter how tough it gets there is always a tomorrow, always something better you just need to go look for it.
Shawn is my inspiration to move to Korea and become an ESL teacher.
Last week May 23, 2006 Shawn Matthews took his own life.
His friend Jake's China Blog:
Jake's China Blog
His ex-girlfriend's Blog
Ling Ling
What's left of Shawn's China Life Blog:
The mostly deleted China Life Blog (CLB)
His current gf does not have a blog that I know of.
Be sure to read the comments, you can tell this guy was loved by so many, his China life blog (CLB) and Korean life blog (KLB) were extremely popular and the source of inspiration for SO MANY (myself included).
All this has caused me to re-evaluate my own decision, am I running from some past demons? Am I making a big mistake by doing this? On a full day of reflection my answers are no. I don't think Shawn made a mistake in leaving his home to go looking for adventure. He lived more in his 5 to 6 years overseas then I have EVER LIVED MY ENTIRE LIFE. I still plan on following in this guys footsteps, no matter how bad the culture shock is, being a functional illterate, and not being able to communicate. I will do my best to stay positive. You will be missed Shawn, by people all over the world.
I am currently waiting for my passport. I will not forget you Shawn.
