Sein was a senior in high school when I met her. She was an international student from Korea, one of about twelve that year at the private school I was teaching at in Green Bay. Her English was spot on and her smile radiant. She had a big heart and lovely straight black hair and exquisite make up. Unfortunately, she was also very unhappy.
It seemed her home placement was with a woman who boarded several students at her home but did little else for them. She didn't cook for them or arrange for transportation to school events, even though she lived way out in the country. Without a driver's license, Sein was stuck for her senior year in this isolated home, unable to engage in typical teenage life. As I learned of Sein's story, it became clear that she needed a new placement. Why not us?
It wasn't long before we were converting our den into an extra bedroom. We covered the glass doors with sheets. Sein turned the couch into a bed and hung her Korean flag on the wall. My husband and I agreed that we didn't need to demand much rent, but would she baby sit our six and four year olds on weekends? Sein happily agreed and so began our only experience housing an international student.
Sein wasn't a very good babysitter, but she was fun to have around. She taught me a few words in Korean (anyung) and how to count (il -ee -sam - sah - oh). She shoveled snow in high heels. She taught us how to make rice and forced us to buy a rice cooker - best thing ever! She made Korean eggs and Korean BBQ - American style. She had us on a quest for the hottest food we could find! Even the nearest Korean restaurant wasn't Korean enough for her. She complained about the price of healthcare in the US and the price of prescription drugs. She took amazing photos of our family with her Nikon camera. So much of what Sein taught us only would come into clearer view when we would move to Korea ourselves a few years later and have the privilege of being taught how to use the subway system in Seoul by Sein herself!
The most unexpected aspect of providing a home for Sein was that she was in the middle of getting her driver's license and needed "road time". Now, I didn't know about this when she arrived at our home. It just so happened that one day a driver's ed car showed up in our driveway to pick her up for a lesson. After a few hours, the instructor returned with a report on what Sein should be working on. "She needed to work on backing up and parallel parking," he said to me expectantly. It was only at that point that I realized that he expected I would be the one to help her learn the art of driving. "You want ME to take her out in MY car?" I asked, stunned. In MY new Prius? He had to be mad! She was from another country, for goodness, sake. What was the law about getting into car accidents in such a case? Would my insurance cover an accident of a foreign driver without a license? This was not good.
We proceeded, nonetheless. Pretty soon I was sitting in the passenger seat of my Prius and Sein drove around the small neighborhoods and eventually onto the highway. After a few months I was waving to her and wishing her luck as she drove my car for the driving test. She failed. Perhaps she was too cautious.
I remember an incident when she was practicing. She was approaching a 4-way stop sign. She stopped well behind the sign - entirely according to the book. Unfortunately, the female driver behind us was NOT impressed with he slow stop so far back. As it is usual to slide to almost the middle of the intersection before checking for other cars, driving by the book flew in the face of the woman's expectations. Boy, did she get pissed. Poor Sein kept saying, "I'm just doing what I'm supposed to, right?" "Yes and no," I explained as the woman zoomed past us swearing loudly out her window and honking.
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