Writing 2

2009.8.14-17 SF
San Francisco, nice to see you again.
After 12 years I came back to San Francisco. During the flight, I tried to remember what happened 12 years ago, and figure out why I came to San Francisco again.
That was in 1997 when I was a freshman in college. My mom and I went to Dallas for a seminar, and on our way back home, we stopped in San Francisco to sightsee. Unfortunately, our airplane tickets were direct flight to Taiwan which meant we could not stop in S.F. Therefore, we were fined a lot of money and were short of cash in San Francisco. It was a hard time, we did not have money to buy food, and we stood in front of the supermarket like beggars to share plain bread. The experience was so bad that Mom and I kept having quarrels and felt upset at the same time. To make matters worse, I had got my baptism in the church right before we went to America, Mom was so angry that I did not tell her before she could stop me. In a word, it was a sad story I had in San Francisco.

This time, I came to San Francisco to join a retreat and to meet some church friends I knew before. At first, I thought I could stay with some Taiwanese friends. But they did not answer me and couldnot pick me up at SFO. Everything was so unsure and weird before I left New York, I felt so alone that I could only count on God. After an eight and half hours’ flight, I took the BART (air train in SF) to the place where my church friend could pick me up, and he arranged a place where I could stay. But this is a Korean family; their English is poor so they talked only in Korean which I cannot understand. But luckily, I went to church and listened to a very good sermon. It was about the love of Jesus.

The last day, one of the pastors took me to several famous tourist spots; we ate sea food in the Fisherman’s Wharf and went to see the famous trolley. He then showed me the curviest street (Lombard) in the world; it was designed for horses to carry heavy goods on the hill. We also went to the biggest Chinatown, the Golden Gate Bridge and the Bay Bridge. San Francisco is famous for its earthquake, Gold Rush, summer fog, seafood and nudist camps. I really enjoyed the beautiful scenery and the fine weather there. Also, we had barbeque in the park, where it was nice to talk and chat with friends.

My flight back to New York was an overnight flight. I took it and got five hours of sleep and went directly back to my job. Though I was a little tired, it saved time. In conclusion, through this trip I found myself and resolved the question I had 12 years ago, I am so appreciative of everything especially the happy ending.