NInth-grader Charlie just came back from a trip to South Korea, where his adopted sister was born eight years ago. To Charlie, the definition of family encompasses much more than just people related by blood or marriage.
I have an adopted sister, and we got her in July 2010 when she was 11 months old. We arrived in South Korea on the Fourth of July and we left a week later with a new addition to the family. She bit me the first time she met me! Even now, we fight quite a bit, but deep down I know we’re family. There’s more than meets the eye. She’s part of my family just like anyone else.
I just came back from a trip to Japan and Korea four days before EXPLO, so I’m still jet lagged. We went to the agency where my sister’s from. It’s really cool; it’s not every day that you meet someone who has an adopted sibling from Korea. You obviously get to have some really neat experiences that you wouldn’t get to do that often, like have authentic Korean food (which is really good) and travel to Korea and Japan. Also: Try Korean barbecue — it’s delicious.
To me, family are the people who love you and care about you. EXPLO isn’t a family by marriage or blood, but I feel I’ll get that by the time my experience at EXPLO is done.
Casey Kim