Ep 11: Two Tables - What Two Weeks in Korea Actually Taught Me

I made peace with the Korean I don't have in Episode 10. Then I went back to Korea for two weeks, and found out peace with a gap isn't the same as closing one. This trip split itself in half without us planning it. First, tourist Seoul, hotels, Hongdae street performers, custom shirts at Nike, an airsoft range, and the streetwear brand that stopped me in my tracks. Then everything changed when we moved into my wife's cousin's apartment in Incheon and started actually living there, recycling rules and all. I sat at two completely different family tables on this trip, one quiet, one loud, and realized I belong to both now. I met a Korean American woman who ran my exact identity struggle in reverse. I watched a country run on trust I never grew up inside of, and finally understood where some of my own values actually came from. And I sat through soju-soaked family dinners without a drink in my hand, ten thousand miles from where I made that decision, and it held. If you've ever had to choose between the version of home you were given and the version you had to build yourself, this one's for you. I Took the Long Way is a personal storytelling podcast about faith, family, identity, and figuring it out the hard way. New episodes on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and wherever you listen.