Before we even reached the front door, the residents of Angel House ran out to greet and hug us. I was pleasantly surprised at their openness towards strangers! They grabbed our hands and we ran towards the house. Once inside, we became acquainted with the residents. The ages of the residents ranged from one to seventy, and they all got along perfectly. Throughout the entire day, the children jumped into my arms, and the adults repeatedly shook my hands. After one hour, we split up into three groups according to tasks. We all chose whether we wanted to clean, do laundry, or cook. Momo and I were in the group in charge of laundry, and we rolled up our sleeves and pants and did laundry the old-fashioned way. We sat down outside and we scrubbed every article of clothing that was given to us. We sat and talked about our lives and what brought us to the Angel House. Needless to say, that was the most fun I have ever had doing laundry!

After we finished with laundry, we sat down and ate the meal that the other volunteers made for us. After we were done eating, about one hour remained until it was time for us to leave. We sat down with the residents and played a few very intense rounds of “duck duck goose.” One of the volunteers played the guitar for us and we all sang and “showed off our moves.” Around 7pm, it was finally time to part. We all agreed that it was not proper to say goodbye, ‘see you later’ was more appropriate. We all promised to return as soon as we could!

As we walked down the dusty road that led to the bus stop, we all shared our experiences that day and how it affected us. As cliché as it sounds, I never anticipated that I would be given an opportunity to make a difference in a local community during my stay in Korea. By sacrificing only a few hours of my time, I was able to give assistance to those who really needed it. I will definitely be making more trips to Angel House on the first Saturday of every month this summer, and I encourage others to do the same!!!!