Thank you...

My packet, my Rememberance Day Poppy.// My wine, my letters n gifts .
At 6:00 p.m. I walked into the classroom to teach the last 3-hour session with my advanced class. It's my smallest class, only 12 students, and all of them I've taught for at least 2 semesters. Although it's a Friday evening class, students are very enthusiastic and we always have wonderful classes. As I approached my desk I noticed a package sitting on it. Immediately I knew that it was a package I've been waiting for a long time to arrive from Canada. A student in my class, Hye-yoon, who also works in the English Dept. office, brought it for me. Can you imagine the torture of waiting until the end of class to get home and open it. I had asked for a few thingsf of my sister in law to pack and send me but the package was much bigger than I thought it'd be. It could mean only one thing: they packed more than what I asked for .
I finally came home at around 9:00. I put on some Goran Bregovic music on, opened a bottle of my more expensive wine (only consumed when I feel extra happy or unhappy) and set out to open the package. First I took a photo of me with an unopened package. Pathetic perhaps, but the truth is that I haven't gotten many packages in my life - this was kind of historic. A few minutes later the goodies spilled out of the box: my beautiful nightgown with tiny blue flowers embroidered around the hem and arm openings, purchased in Canada last summer and left behind hidden under a pile of clothes in kids' room; Crest Whitening Sensastions toothpaste (in cinnamon, vanilla mint and spearmint flavours- my faves) and a bonus (god bless my family who takes tooth care very seriously) of 2 tubes of "vivid white", the newest whitening product from Crest; two Revlon new complexion one step compact make up; three Secret anti-perspirants; a hot water bottle (for some strange reason unavailable in Korea); a wonderful CD with a medly of famous arias. The best were three hand-written letters from my sister-in-law, my niece and my nephew. My niece sent me a pair of glitzy earrings (that I just might decide to use for my Scottish ball) "as a reward for all my hard work." She might mean last summer with them, hehehe. Yeah, it's an early Christmas for me.
Being so elated over the package I've decided to start sending Christmas gifts home. In our family sending gifts overseas was frowned upon as excessive and showy - but now I can certainly see the value in it, and I'll do it. If my dearest could be as happy as I was for a fraction of a second, then it's worth it. I'll start looking for something nice right now.
Hvala vam, dobri ljudi.