Korea is called the Land of the Morning Calm. And there’s a saying here among the American rank, file & families…the Land of Not Quite Right.

That whole ‘close, but no cigar’ bit.

Trying to recreate the American experience, take the 4th of July for example, on foreign soil can never be quite right though.

It’s true. But it’s also true of any culture transplanted into another one.

Do you think your town could pull off an authentic German Ocktoberfest to impress a Berliner? Would you expect China to know how to throw a rodeo that would make a cowboy proud? Or Egypt to replicate your grandmother’s banana pudding?…Shoot – do you think Virginia Tex-Mex restaurants taste anything like real Tex-Mex? Or that I could make kimchi so delicious that the Lumber Barons would beg for the recipe?

I’ll give you a hint – NO!

Oh, everyone could get close (in varying degrees) but it wouldn’t be quite right.

And that’s the only way to describe our 4th of July this year – not quite right.

Homesickness is a powerful thing. Whether you’re stationed in South Carolina missing Arizona, or in South Korea missing Texas. It comes in cycles (as I’ve said before) and it can be the worst during American holidays.

It’s worse because, believe it or not, you have built-in expectations of what the holiday should look like, feel like, smell & taste like. And yes, every American’s expectations are slightly different – but when you boil it all down, I would bet you they’re all the same.

But back to the story at hand…

It was hot. Sticky hot. There were sticky hot melting people as far as the eye could see.

And as the sun went down & the evening show was about to start it finally began to cool a bit…and then things began to drift a little “not quite right”.

From out of the blue – with no announcement whatsoever, in English or Hangul thank-you-very-much - the Korean orchestra began playing the American national anthem.

Military personnel & families popped up left & right as we were all caught off guard…hurrying to stand at attention or put their hand over their hearts. While the Koreans sitting through out the field & bleachers remained in their seats, whispering to one another, wondering if they should stand up, too. It was awkward…for everyone.

But that’s when it hit me.

I was standing up…and they were sitting down.

There was just something about standing up to be counted among the Americans when standing on foreign soil.

And in that act of standing up I felt an overwhelming flood of emotion.

Home. I wanted to be home. I wanted to be home right now & I was umpteen thousand miles away. And as all those thoughts raced through my head I realized two things: no one was singing (granted, the guys can’t while at attention) & that the lack of voices made it seem so much more hollow.

And a tear or two rolled down my cheek. I tried to quickly wipe it away, but nope…Eric caught me.

[damn]

So here’s a hint for the guys: Sometimes us girls just want to shed a tear without it being seen…without it being pointed out. It’s usually because we know our emotions are getting the best of us & we don’t want to be caught looking silly – crying over the odd thing here or there.

So if you catch us…ok, ok, if you catch me…do me a favor. Don’t make a big deal of it. Don’t ask me to explain why there are tears rolling down my face. Just move on. The explaining is only going to make me cry more.

So he & I went through the whole exchange:

Eric: ‘Are you crying?’

Jenn: ‘No’

Eric: ‘Yes, you’re crying’

Jenn: ‘Ok, I’m crying’

Eric: ‘But why are you crying?’

[damn it]

Jenn: ‘I’m just homesick.’

Thankfully the traditional Korean music & drummers began to play & I didn’t have to continue explaining. I’ve already showed you clips of both groups. They were really great & they gave me a chance to redirect my thoughts away from home.

Shortly afterwards the General got up to say a few words & announce that due to an expected inbound storm they were going to have to change the rest of the night’s line up.

The orchestra would play the 1812 Overture first, the fireworks would follow(really wish it could’ve been timed together, but oh well) & afterwards the orchestra would continue with the rest of their scheduled performance.

I held my breath…yes, I know it’s silly. I haven’t heard the overture live in several years & this was the moment…the moment I was going to commit to memory to stave off homesickness.

And as I closed my eyes the strings began to play.

…da dum da dahhh dah-dah….da dah dah da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-dah dahhh dah dum…

So to catch everyone up…in case you’re just now joining…I was sharing that I tend to be a little biased when I attend events – any events, big or small.

Just as a seamstress can spot a crooked hem, a police officer can point out security gaps, I see the background details of event management.

Don’t get me wrong, I was no big wig during my time then…just another grunt in the planning & executing background. But I got to watch & over the course of 2 years I learned a lot.

So as excited as I was to attend Freedom Fest this year (we missed the majority of it last year), I tried to adjust my expectations. But I couldn’t help it…I was excited.

The information put out by the base said that the Korean Ministry of National Defense Philharmonic Orchestra… (put that on a business card)…would be playing Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture – the quintessential American 4th of July experience.

Music…fireworks…food…it was gonna be great. A chance to finally feel…if even for just a moment…American again.

[sigh]

I’ve come to learn that the longer & longer you live overseas, the less & less you feel like an American. It can’t be helped. You’re living in a foreign country submerssed in a completely foreign culture.

You’re just so removed from everything familiar that you find yourself clinging to any chance to feel American again. And it’s normal. So for all you wives heading this way, just be prepared & know that you’re not alone.

But Tchaikovsky & fireworks!?!…It couldn’t get any better.

True…the program also included traditional Korean music & performances…but still.

I crossed my fingers that the orchestra had coordinated with the base to have cannon fire in the background to really help sell the overture, but I didn’t hold my breath. I figured that might be expecting too much.

I imagined closing my eyes when the music & fireworks were going full blast just so that I could picture myself at home. Transported by the sound of it all.

And I was going to set every detail, every sound, every boom to memory. It was going to sustain me when the homesickness cycle kicked in again.

That was the plan.

That was not, however, how it worked out.

My old boss had a saying…

‘THERE WILL BE WEATHER.’

It was his way of letting us know to expect things to turn on a dime should the skies open up, the heat melt everyone into puddles or high winds knock all our hard work down.

And in July…in Korea…weather means monsoon season…

Sticky, humid, melting, monsoon season.

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I know, I know…I’m leaving you hanging on two fronts now & I’m sorry. But I thought you might like to see another glimpse of the music performers at Freedom Fest since I’m really out of it today.

This is a clip of the drum solo during the traditional Korean music presentation & I loved watching their faces. You can tell they really enjoy what they do.

As for me…my headache came back around 10 this morning & I’ve not been able to get it to go away yet.

It makes me fuzzy. It’s hard to think straight & all I want to do is sleep.

So we’ll try all this again tomorrow.

When we were stationed in Virginia I had a once-in-a-lifetime job with an event management company.

They were hired to produce several key events, including the culminating “big show” – a 3 day festival, for the 400th anniversary of the founding of Jamestown.

There was a concert night with a few well-known musicians & artists.

There was a 1,607 voice choir made up of groups from across the country singing patriotic songs.

(Why 1,607? It was when Jamestown was founded – May 1607.)

There was a 400 piece orchestra…which believe it or not, was briefly conducted by then President Bush at the end of his speech.

The stage was enormous with a massive LED screen and incredible firework displays each of the last two nights.

And while the Queen arrived earlier than the actual event, I got to stand in a viewing line as she passed by twice – attending a play at Historic Jamestowne Island.

But none of that…and I mean none of that…compared to the experience of the event thrown for the 225th Anniversary of the Battle of Yorktown.

Military reenactors fighting battles with cannon smoke sweeping across the fields, the sounds of fife & drum corps filling the air, modern day military color guard, an F16 fly-over, a stage performance & concert…

and…

THE. BEST. Fireworks. Display. EVER!!!

It was right on top of us & seemed to last forever.

But I’m telling you all of this so you can understand why I my experience at Freedom Fest this year was disheartening - and why I’m probably not the best person to ask how it went anyway.

I’m biased.

I’ve been in the background. I’ve seen all the coordination & details that go into pulling off an event – big or small. And as I walked the festival on base for our 4th of July celebration, instead of seeing a fun, pleasurable event – which it was, don’t get me wrong - all I saw were the details.

Just as Eric points out to me all the glaring mistakes that TV & the movies make when portraying the Army or the military, I caught myself pointing out all the missed event opportunities to him.

And it’s not just a Freedom Fest thing…I can’t go to any event, again big or small, without paying attention to all the logistics, strategy, details, sound system, lighting & layout.

Experiencing 4th of July when you live overseas is a unique experience unto itself anyway. It’s almost indescribable.

But that’s what I’ve been doing the past few days…trying to find a way to convey the story of the Freedom Fest experience. For those that are here in Korea – you automatically get it without me having to go into great detail. You probably experienced the same feelings I did.

But for those at home?…

Yeah…it’s different. And it’s a story worth telling.

But it needs to be told just right.

Tomorrow.

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Last night was Freedom Fest at Camp Humphreys.

And among the American holidays celebrated here, this one’s the biggest.

It was a great experience with a few great pictures to share – along with this video – but I’m still not exactly sure how I want to tell the story of it.

But for now, I thought you would enjoy a quick glimpse of the traditional Korean drum troop that performed.

It goes a little fuzzy in the middle for a sec, but it will clear up again.

Enjoy! And I hope you had a great Fourth!

(And yes, I’ll pick up the story of the gift tomorrow.)