Christmas Party--Yonsei Severance Hospital (2014-12-17)

Two words that don't go together--"kids" and "cancer." Yesterday HOPE (Helping Others Prosper through English) hosted a Christmas party at Yonsei University's Severance Hospital in the Childrens' Cancer war. It was the second year in a row, first inspired October 2013 when my buddy Nick Adams visited South Korea. Jungah Ji joined us last year, as she did for the Christmas Party last year and then again this year! Some of you may recall that I decided to hold a Christmas Party at the hospital in late 2013. I wrote about it here (with photos).
http://caseylartigue.blogspot.com/2013/12/inspiration-from-lousy-visitor-korea.html

The man of the day: Edward M. Robinson. He is the one who really pulled it together. He is really busy, doesn't have much free time, but he found the way to get it done. I will add the names of the volunteers when I get the complete list.

Thanks to all of the volunteers who made yesterday's party at the kids' cancer ward at Yonsei's Severance Hospital. 

But there were two scene stealers. Volunteer Nevada Rhodes and one of the children. Scroll down below to view the photos.

In one corner: The young boy was the first to arrive. He was running around, entertaining himself. His mother was loving every minute of it. The kid was so active, I had the feeling that no one has told him or he doesn't understand what it means that he has cancer.

Then he began to engage our volunteers as they arrived. he was challenging me at one point in a balloon contest.

In the other corner: Nevada Rhodes. A big, tall American who has been living in South Korea since c. 1996. He speaks fluent Korean, is constantly kidding around, and bringing energy to the room.

Then, the two encountered each other when Nevada was blowing up balloons. Of course, they then began a long balloon battle. Finally, the young boy fought through Nevada's defenses, landing a fatal stab.

Of course, Nevada didn't go easily. He then had the longest death scene in history, much to the delight of the boy, his mother, and everyone else in the room who had the misfortune to witness it. 

They continued bonding, but the boy also battled with another young cancer patient, with Jungah Ji, all the while laughing and running around.

His mother loved it, she couldn't stop taking photos. It is a reminder how short life is, and I guess that having a son with cancer she doesn't need to be reminded, she is enjoying every moment with her son. He may be rambunctious, but considering the context, it was a truly beautiful thing.

The staff warned us when we visited from room to room that we should be careful, no joking around. Thankfully, Nevada didn't listen. He was light-hearted, unable to stop being himself. And the kids and their parents clearly enjoyed it.

"Yoegi Anjuseyo!"

* I have a short reflection in today's Korea Times about an encounter with an unfriendly looking Korean man on the subway. It was a reminder not to be too quick in judging people in Korea. 09-13-2011 16:47 'Yeogi Anjeuseyo!' By Casey Lartigue Jr. The recent incident in which an American English teacher bullied an elderly Korean man and other passengers on the bus reminded me of a more pleasing incident from years ago. I was on the subway, taking the train outside of Seoul for a work assignment. I have the habit of standing on the subway to strategically position myself near the doors in case my stop magically appears. On that particular day, there was a Korean man STARING at me. Not just looking at me, but intensely staring at me. He had an incredible frown on his face. Not just for one stop, but for several stops the guy just kept staring at me. If I had known more Korean then I would have been able to curse him ...

Manufactured cases

My former Cato Institute colleague Bob Levy is profiled by the Associated Press for his role in the challenge to the DC gun ban. One great thing about Levy is that he tells it like it is. As the article quotes: And Levy freely admits the case is manufactured, not one that bubbled up by chance from the district's steady flow of criminal cases involving guns. He wanted presentable plaintiffs to make a case for gun rights, not criminals. "We didn't want crack heads and bank robbers to be poster boys for the Second Amendment," he said. Is there a problem with this case being manufactured? I heard a talking head on the radio complaining a while ago that this case wasn't from real DC residents, that it was from outsiders. What's wrong with that? There may be some times that it takes an outsider to challenge an injustice or bad law. Did DC residents claim that Martin Luther King Jr. was an outsider who should have minded his own business? And about the case being ...

Rich talking back

The rich are talked about very often in negative terms, but how often do the rich respond in kind? Australian billionaire Gina Rinehart, who inherited most of her money but apparently has also done very well with it, recently railed against class warfare and had some advice for the non-rich : "There is no monopoly on becoming a millionaire," she writes. "If you're jealous of those with more money, don't just sit there and complain. Do something to make more money yourself - spend less time drinking, or smoking and socializing and more time working." She complained about politicians raising taxes, regulations that slow investment, and other anti-business policies that harm the poor. "If you want to help the poor and our next generation, make investment, reinvenstment and businesses welcome."

2014-02-14 Yeon-Mi Park`s debut

Yeonmi Park, February 14, 2014, making her debut! Yesterday I was one of the speakers at a special session on North Korean refugees at the Canadian Maple International School. Wow, it was a wonderful time! * Yeon-Mi Park delivered her first major speech in English. She was wonderful! She told her story (35 minute speech without notes), discussed different aspects of North Korea, and then handled questions from students for more than an hour. She did seem to be nervous at the beginning-she took a deep breath just as she started, looked at me, then told her story from her heart. * Returning from the speech, I told Yeonmi that she had star potential. She told me that she didn't believe it, but I told her that the way she handled Q&A and told her story, I would be lucky to have her still returning my phone calls within a year. * The students had many questions. They have been learning about North Korea. They are now reading "Escape from Camp 14" featuring Shin Dong-h...

Get rid of that watermelon!

Part 1: When I was a youngster I used to collect Confederate money, posters and photographs with caricatures of blacks, and "No blacks allowed signs." I loved the money because it was a reminder of how far the sorry Confederacy had fallen. I had one poster of a dark-skinned black boy munching on a watermelon. I would look at that small poster and wonder, "What in the world is wrong with anyone wanting to eat watermelon?" Yes, white people, I'm talking to you. Your parents, grandparents, and other ancestors who thought making fun of blacks for eating watermelon were crazy ! Even people who say that nothing has changed in race relations must acknowledge that the many stereotypes of blacks are no longer prevalent. But then, there are also some ready to remind us of days-gone-by by debunking stuff that doesn't need to be debunked today. According to the Washington Post: The sound you just heard was yet another racial stereotype going kersplat ! Some ...

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