Pilgrimage to Church

Growing up in the west as a Latter-day Saint, I think I was a little ignorant to how the rest of the world does things. Getting to church being one of those things.  I have been blessed up until this point to live in areas where church is easy to get to. In this side of the world, it takes a lot more effort. (At least if you want to attend an English speaking ward.)

One of the things I was most excited about when moving here was going to church.  Being in such a foreign place, it felt so good to know that anywhere we went in the world, we would have an automatic family in our ward.

This past Sunday, We set out to church using public transportation since we don't have our car.  We knew it would be a bit of a haul, but even I was shocked how long it took.  It didn't help that the Subway was super confusing and all the words were in Korean.  There was some English, but not enough for us.  The stop we started at was not really stroller friendly either.  We could not find an elevator, so we had to carry Easton in his stroller up and down the station.  Luckily, the other stops were better, but that first stop was crazy.  We thought at one point we found an elevator because we found a door with a picture of a wheelchair, but it turned out to be a handicapped bathroom.  The boys died laughing at that.  (The still bring that up and laugh.)

It is true what they say, public transportation is so nice here.  Having come from DC, really anything is better than that :) Every time you come to a stop, a fun little song comes on and announces the stop. The seats are even heated! I can definitely see myself using the public transportation often because it is so nice. (At least once I figure out how to use it.)

We got to the stop where we needed to get off to find the church building, and when we got on the street we were instantly lost. We figured out we were going in the wrong direction after a half a mile.  It was really cold as well on Sunday, so the thought of turning around and walking more was so defeating! We finally found the church after walking down all these crazy alleys, and I felt like crying when I saw it! It really felt like we were coming home to see something familiar.  We were over an hour late, but we made it! We walked in, unsure if where we needed to go, but once we heard people speaking in English, we were able to figure it out.

Sacrament meeting was just ending when we go there, so we sat out in the lobby area and waited.  While we were waiting, an older Korean woman and her grand daughter came in.  The grandma was instantly attracted to our kids and came over to talk to them.  Easton has loved all the attention, so he was loving it and laughing and smiling.  The older boys were just laughing because they couldn't understand a thing that she was saying and she was talking so excitedly to them. (We are working on manners while being over here because for some reason they think that it's good to laugh anytime anyone speaks Korean towards them.) This super nice lady then invited us to dinner sometime (via her grand daughter translating). Her grand daughter was totally embarrassed by the whole ordeal and said, "Sorry, she just likes make friends" while rolling her eyes.  (She was 10 so anything anyone did was obviously not cool :) We exchanged numbers, but have not heard anything since from her.  I have no idea where her number went, so I hope we haven't broken some kind of social rule here! (We probably did).

Once Sacrament meeting let out, people started pouring out of the chapel. It was obvious then that this branch was not small at all. It was huge! A few people came over to us instantly and started getting information from us.  They should us where all the classrooms were and we were able to get the boys to their classes.  They were actually excited to go, so there was no problem with them going. I think they are just excited to make new friends since they left their friends behind.

We spent the rest of the meetings, fellowshipping with other members and enjoying the lessons.  I can't describe how wonderful it was to be in a completely foreign place and to feel the spirit so strong.  This gospel is all over the world, and what a blessing that is.  To know that we were learning the same things that our loved ones were in the states brought me so much peace and comfort and helped my home sick heart. 

After church, we set out to go back to the base.  We had a general idea where we were going after that, so the trip home was much less stressful.  It still took along time, one thing that we will just have to get use to. It was also more enjoyable since we had time to kind of explore the shops in the underground stations.  There were a ton if little food vendors, and since we have no kitchen or ways to make our is  food right now, our only option was to eat out.  It was so fun to try some local food.  Our goal is to go out and try as much as we can each weekend. 

We finally got back to the hotel around 3. (We left at 9) We were all exhausted, especially Easton who really struggled sleeping anywhere but his crib. We lounged around the rest of the day and relaxed.  A perfect Sabbath day in my opinion!

We get to do this all over again this Sunday, and while that thought is a little daunting, it is also exciting! We are going to move from here in a few years and never complain again about how long it takes to church.  We are also going to have a new found respect for all those saints all over the world who travel much further than we have to to worship. I believe 100% that this church is true, and that's why we will make this trek each and every Sunday while We live here.  There is no where else I would rather be on Sunday.