Sunday6thApril07

There was a last minute change of events for today.

Originally I had been asked to go to the english speaking church I found for Easter sunday and i had fully intended on going but a two nights ago I got a knock at my door and answered to find a good Korean friend.

Earlier in the week she had asked me to go to dinner with her, of course i agreed, we get on really well. Turned out that she was having a bit of dilemma and wanted some advice. She had been going to the Korean church for a while and really wanted to get baptised but it wasn't a simple decision. Her family practice the traditions here, praying with incense to their ancestors and she was afraid she would have to give that up. I didn't feel particularly well equipped for spiritual advice and was afraid of being misinterpreted (although her english is very good, its not excellent) or insulting her. She was determined to here my point of view though so unfortunately i wasn't going to get out of this one. It was an interesting experience purely for the fact that i became very aware of a whole pile of words that are used prolifically in church but actually have no meaning whatsoever out with. I decided there was no point in beating around the bush, there was no point in sugar coating things, i just had to tell it like it is (or at least how i see it.) I explained how becoming a christian is not about traditions, its about becoming part of a relationship, and like getting married; you only get married to one person. Also, it's most definitely not the easiest thing you'll ever do, and although it's definitely worth it, sometimes it can be the hardest thing ever, so you have to be absolutely sure before making a commitment. She seemed just as torn when we left as before, so you can imagine my surprise when she turned up and announced that she had prayed about, phoned her mum to tell her (who had given her support) and had decided to go ahead with it. I was so happy for her, and she asked me go to the service and pray for her. Obviously I agreed.

The fact that I can't understand Korean wasn't an issue this week, someone translated the whole thing for me. It was kinda like subtitles, but in your head. It turned out to be well worth understanding. We gate-crashed a Taiwanese church for the baptism part, which was a little different than I've been used to (most that I've been to were in the sea or in a bigger tank thing) and I'm not sure what the robe was for (in the photo) but essentially it was the same.

The rest of the day I spent in Taipei with my interpreter friend (snuck a wee manicure in there) yapping, and window shopping. She invited along a friend from work (who was American) and then we headed to a Japanese restaurant with the Koreans for a leaving meal for someone. It was a really great day, I had forgotten how nice it was to have a spontaneous conversation with someone. I love the people here, but you constantly have to monitor what you say, speed and clarity of voice, so it was a nice relief to let go for a while.