Trip To Lotte World Amusement Park
Every year the kids at the children’s home are sponsored to go to an amusement park for one Saturday in May. This year was my SEVENTH trip with the kids to the park. There are now social workers at my home who are younger than the kids I spent my first amusement park trip with. Crazy!
Every year I make it a point to get at least one child to overcome their fears and ride a roller coaster for their first time. For me I was scared of heights as a kid and wasn’t able to ride a roller coaster until I was in 8th grade. But once I finally took a ride I discovered heights weren’t that bad and that I loved roller coasters. I also grew a lot more secure and confident in myself.
This year my target was Yong Shin, an 11th grade boy who has been terrified of roller coasters all his life. It took a lot of prodding because he had a lot of fear, but I finally got him to agree to one round of “Rock-Scissors-Paper.” If I won then he would have to ride one time with me, and if he won then I wouldn’t bother him any longer. And of course, I won. =)
Yong Shin was so nervous! Because we arrived at the park at 8am and some of the rides weren’t open until 9:30, we had to wait a while and do more simple rides like bumper cars. Poor Yong Shin was a bit overwhelmed the whole time, but he kept his word and eventually went with me to the roller coaster. A bunch of the kids and a couple other dorm dads (social workers) ended up joining us. I sat next to Yong Shin and clapped and said “Yaaaay” the whole ride so that Yong Shin would relax. He was super tense at first, but as we went I could tell he was gradually loosening up. At the end he smiled and said, “So that’s what a roller coaster feels like.” He got out and excitedly talked with the other boys about the experience (it was a fast coaster). He was thankful for me pushing him so much and his demeanor as we enjoyed the rest of the day was completely different from his demeanor when we first entered the park.
With Yong Shin before the ride
With Soo Jeong and Hyun Hee… Soo Jeong, in 4th grade, was also riding the roller coaster for the first time^^
Hyun Woon dorm dad, Young Eun, Yoo Jin, and Sun Ran before the ride
With siblings Dal Woo and Soo Jin
Yo Han taking a picture of himself while waiting
With dorm dads Hyun Woon and Dong Min riding the “Gyro Drop” (100meters straight drop)
Doing sticker pictures with some of the girls… I would have never done this before I married my wife Sky
Some of the goofy wigs/hats
Jae
Dal Woo and Yoo Jin
With Young Eun and Yoo Jin
Riding the fake hot air balloon ride above the indoor part of the park with Young Eun and Hyun Woon dorm dad
The indoor portion of Lotte World, which is apparently the world’s largest indoor theme park
Soo Jin posing
Yoo Jin posing
Blessings! =)
