Writer홍보협력팀
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2021-08-13
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Teacher Lee Mi-hee and Diane met in KSI Las Palmas and formed a friendship, sharing their hearts and culture. Here is the story of a special relationship between a teacher and a student who have become life friends
Teacher Lee Mi-hee:
This is my fifth year working as a dispatched teacher at the King Sejong Institute. Before I moved to KSI at the cultural center in Germany in January, I worked at KSI Las Palmas for about three years. As I worked there for a long time, there were many unforgettable memories. The most unforgettable of them all is becoming friends with Diane. I remember the first time I saw her in class. Diane was a high school English teacher. It must have taken a lot of thought before she came to King Sejong Institute and became a student again. I could feel her passion through the way she focused in the class.
Diane:
I started having interest in the Korean language and culture through the Korean dramas. The first drama I watched was ‘Saimdang, Memoir of Colors’, and the colorful hanbok caught my eyes. And as the first encounter was a historical drama, I was naturally curious in the traditional culture and history of Korea. I also liked the background music of the drama. Then I thought, I wanted to learn Korean. That is how I found King Sejong Institute and met Teacher Lee Mi-hee. She was the very first Korean I met. It was exciting just meeting her and talking to her.
Teacher Lee Mi-hee:
I never thought we would become lifelong friends. Diane took classes every Saturday, and after class, she always drove me to my place. Thanks to her, I could get home in ten minutes which would have taken 30 minutes by bus. I was quite impressed at how thoughtful she was considering she didn’t live anywhere nearby.
Diane:
While talking in the car on the way home, we found out that we had many similar interests. Although I am a student at KSI, I am also a teacher to other students outside. That is how we became friends, talking about our concerns. Now, we"ve become more than just a teacher and a student, we are friends who share everyday life.
Diane:
I got to learn more about Korea while taking classes at KSI. I became more interested in not only the drama and music, but also the in politics, economics, arts, and especially female Korean writers. I also remember the day I first donned a hanbok in a cultural class. I was so happy, like a child who was just given a new toy.
Teacher Lee Mi-hee:
Diane always participated whenever there was a cultural event at the institute. I even called her “the honorary ambassador of KSI Las Palmas”. I could feel her affection for the Korean culture, seeing her putting up posters for events at KSI in her school, even when no one asked her to. I enjoyed seeing her not only inside KSI, but outside the classroom. The Las Palmas Classical Music Concert outdoors that I attended with her was the most memorable. It was a meaningful time for me to experience the Spanish culture through the concert.
Diane:
I remember the time I was gifted a kit for making triangle-shaped gimbap. My teacher taught me how to cook rice and make triangle-shaped gimbap herself. I wasn’t very confident in cooking Korean food, despite loving it. Now, I have something to be proud of, thanks to her.
Teacher Lee Mi-hee:
The deeper we understood each other’s culture, the wider the scope of our conversation became. We are both teacher and student to each other. For example, I once invited Diane and her classmates to a Korean restaurant to introduce them to Korean food. Diane and the other students, in return, invited me to an outdoor Spanish barbecue party. In exchanging our cultures, we became more familiar with each other.
Teacher Lee Mi-hee:
As I moved to another workplace this January, many things have changed in my life. Currently, I am in charge of a Korean language education project for middle and high schools that is planned by the Korean language team in Berlin, and I’m having very busy days. However, Las Palmas has become my second home. And whenever I feel homesick, I talk to Diane through messenger and talk about each other’s circumstance, we also talk via zoom.
Diane:
Her absence is huge, but I am continuing my Korean studies. As I grew to love the Korean language and culture, my family did too. At first, my family didn’t understand why I was into the language and culture of a strange country. But as time passed, my mother became a K-drama fan, and my eight-year-old daughter can read Korean. And all my family members enjoy Korean food. Now, Korean language and culture became the hobby and happiness for everyone in my family. All this thanks to Teacher Lee Mi-hee, who helped me learn Korean language in a fun and easy way.
Teacher Lee Mi-hee:
I am glad to hear that it helped Diane. Most learners of Korean feel that the language is fun, but difficult. Korean is not an easy language for Western students to learn. It is because Korean is characteristically different from the Western languages which uses alphabets, and is deeply associated with Chinese characters. My objective is to be a teacher who can teach Korean in a fun and easy way. I would like to study a more effective teaching method for the learners in the King Sejong Institutes around the world. But before that, there is something that I would like to tell all students of Korean, including Diane. If you"re having difficulties, you can take a rest. There are times when you don’t feel like doing things, however much you enjoy doing them. Rest if you’re tired, you can run again later.
Diane:
It’s been almost three years since I started learning Korean, but I am still not good in speaking. However, I will learn Korean, with the determination to be a student forever. As Teacher Lee Mi-hee said, I can take a break, when it"s hard. Her support gives me the motivation.
Teacher Lee Mi-hee:
Remember that we are a teacher, a student, and a friend to each other forever. And remember that it is the King Sejong Institute that that created this relationship. Although we cannot meet in person due to COVID-19, as we know. We will meet again soon. Like the day we met and felt happy sharing Korean food, we will meet again and be happy someday soon.
“Chau, hasta luego. Dyane!(Bye, see you later, Diane!)”
