Korea Founders Day Festivites in Choenan

• It was one of those life-time moments. You know, the kind that stays with you over time; the smell, the breeze in your face, the orange crescent moon hanging softly in the sky, the sounds. We were invited guests to the National Foundation Day festival parade. Several of us from KNU went to join Koreans in the celebration of the founding of their country; 2333 B.C. to be exact! Much of the story is legend, of course. I will let you look up the history. My blog is about Friday night, Oct. 3, 2008.
• Since we were invited guests of the mayor his deputy escorted us throughout the evening. It began with a delicious dinner of duck, pork, bee bim bop, and other traditional foods on an outdoor picnic table. It was a reminder of county fair events back home; grills everywhere, dozens of huge white tents decorated the landscape, and hundreds, if not thousands, of people milling about trying to get a glimpse of anything. After our meal we were whisked away to one of the high schools where the parade was forming. The mayor graciously greeted us there and then we were escorted past all the entries, a miniature Olympic parade of nations: Africa, Bulgaria, Japan, Venezuela, Slovakia, and other nations. The Osan Air Base and the Air Force military band, the fourteen universities in Choenan were represented including some of our own KNU students.
• Promptly at 7:00 p.m. we heard a countdown begin, 10, 9, 8...2, 1 KA BOOM! We were suddenly encircled by a fireworks display. People cheered as an array of colors hid the sky. The parade had begun. For the next 90 minutes we walked the streets of Cheonan. Thousands stood along the route cheering as we went. Since we were with the Mayor and his entourage, we were close to the front. Confetti fell from the sky, bands played and girls danced as we made our way to downtown, over 2 miles away. It was a great evening. I made a comment to someone as we started out: "This is the way the world should be, nations hand in hand celebrating life and the world." There was dancing, music, laughter, all celebrating life. Someday it will be like this. It is times like these we get a glimpse of the new heaven and the new earth. It is in such a moment that we put the memories away for safe keeping to remember how it was, and to renew our faith in how it will be.