Oil Spill

There was a massive oil spill over here about a week ago. It happened on the West coast of Korea in the Yellow sea. I hear that it's the worst oil spill in the history of Korea. I also hear it could take up to 30 years for it to completely clear out of the water and for everything to return back to normal.

I was invited by one of my adult students to go help clean up some of the damage today. I wasn't sure what to expect, but I was happy to help!

We left at 7:30 a.m. Bright and early in the morning! Soyeon and I were both so tired we slept most of the way. When we arrived, the smell of oil was very strong, but it wasn't obvious where it was coming. We all had to climb into these gray jump suits that made us look like a family of bears... or Oompa Loompas. We also had to wear masks, rubber gloves and rubber boots. After we were all decked out, Soyeon and I couldn't stop laughing at ourselves. We looked ridiculous, and it was hard to move.

After finally gearing up... we walked down to the beach and got to work. It was some of the most tedious work I have ever done. It is fortunate that most Koreans are VERY good at squatting for long periods of time because that is how one had to be positioned for the majority of the time spent there. I, however, am not that good at squatting. My back starts to hurt as well as my knees and just about every other joint in my body... so now I feel like a big knot.

The tide was out while we worked and our job was to collect as much oil off of the beach as possible. This was done by shoveling up the oil directly off of the sand and also soaking the oil up from the water using these square spongie thingies.

I spent most of my time squatting down next to Soyeon on a patch of beach raking the oil off of the sand with a tiny little spade shovel. It was tedious. I also helped strategically place and lay out the square spongie things that soaked up the oil... but that's about it. I was definitely expecting something a little more physical or involved... but, after a while, I started to realize the magnitude of what had happened...

Oil is a strange and powerful substance... and imagine a HUGE tanker dumping every last bit of its oil out into the sea. The sand was just saturated with the oil and without help from people like Soyeon and all of the people who went today, it would NEVER go away. The work is tedious, but that's why it's so important that people are willing to do it. The oil was just everywhere. There was no escaping it. After about 5 minutes, the shovel I was using was completely covered in oil. If I licked my lips, I tasted oil, if I smelled my hair, I smelled oil. I just wish good things could be as pervasive as oil is. It just gets into everything and it doesn't like to come off!

After about 41/2 hours of work, it was time to call it a day. We waddled back to the bus, took off all of our gear, climbed on the bus and almost immediately fell asleep. Even though the work wasn't as physical or strenuous as I was expecting, it was still tiring.

It was so great to be able to help out with something like this. It was like going on a mini missions trip while in Korea. I loved being able to help, I just wish I knew how to speak Korean! I think one thing I'm learning while living here is how to appreciate silence. I definitely talk a LOT less than I did before. Silence is a good thing. I appreciate being with people and being comfortable in the silence.

Here are a few pictures of the oil spill sight!

Love you, miss you, praying for you!

Hil