"Have a great, wonderful, nice, perfect day!"

Albert is one of my youngest students, and probably the only one who can pull off the name "Albert." He speaks in full sentences, and his mantra is "Sit up straight." At least once in class, he will exclaim, "Teacher, so-and-so is not sit up straight!" At the end of class, he will chase after me before heading to the elevator to wish me a "great, wonderful, nice, perfect day" or some other variant with just as many positive adjectives. I don't think he knows how much that makes my day.

Ever notice how the smallest things can get you down? It's really easy for me to spiral in a negative reaction to Korea.

It's too cold and the winter and too hot in the summer.

I hate not speaking the language.

The main food group is fermented food and that makes me queazy.

There's no point in lengthening the list. It's obviously easy to complain. No, I am not staying in Korea more than a year, but it's not because I hate life here. Truth be told, I find it intriguing, peaceful, and even fulfilling at times. I'm leaving because there are other things I want to do, and I can't have both. I don't love everything about Korea, but let's be honest, I don't love everything about anywhere. A little nudge is all it takes to wake up the pessimistic monster and anything can be bitterly perceived.

That realization got me thinking about what I love about places. Why was it that when, after a long journey back from Florida, I was happy to be "home"? How could I use that word? It isn't just about where you are in the world, but where you are in life, what you are doing. There is joy to be found in every place we are. Especially when, like me, you're pretty lucky with life: you have a job, a place to live, great friends, wonderful family... the list goes on.

So what makes a great, wonderful, nice, perfect day?

1. A friendly face - Obviously friends are helpful here, but beyond that, I mean strangers who don't scowl or act like no one is around but who simply smile. Recognition is always nice here. When I was studying in Japan, I developed a relationship with my neighbors' son, who was about 3 or 4. I saw Aoi-chan every day on my way to school and I would simply smile. The first few times he just stared, but eventually he would smile back and wave, even come chase after me and walk down the street with me until we parted ways. We never really exchanged a word. In Daejeon, one of my favorite people is the Family Mart lady, who sees me come in practically every day before work and always has a huge smile on her face. Sometimes I go in just for that, even if I don't actually need anything. It makes the routine pleasant, even when I am running a little late (or very late).

2. Successes - Ok, this also seems obvious but teaching I often miss small successes that are really worth noting. Tom is my favorite example here, because it took me a while to realize how far he'd come. When I first started teaching him, he didn't know a short 'a' from a long 'a' and on one occasion, actually fell asleep mid-sentence. And I don't mean mine. This was a student I taught for eight months, one on one, and at some point in January, I realized he could spell (kind of). He was reading, writing and actually carrying conversations with me, and instead of dreading the class, and hoping he was absent, I looked forward to it. He became one of my most enthusiastic students. Yet even so, I would so often get frustrated in class, either at the fact he never did his homework, or at his game of purposefully answering questions wrong (ever notice how kids really don't get tired of a joke very fast?). In all that, I forgot to be amazed that his English was now good enough to play that game.

3. The weather - I don't just mean sunshine, that one's too easy. I mean even the cold or rainy days. Appreciate the clothes you can wear, the food you can eat, the sound of the rain, coming in from the cold, a hot drink. I love the spring more because it comes after winter. Yes, winter is cold, but hey, we have heaters and sweaters and delicious warm food to warm us up, but one of my favorite times to go to a park is when it's cold, because it's so quiet, so still.

4. Cherry blossoms - The great thing about cherry blossoms is that you have to enjoy them while you can, because next week they'll be gone. They are the epitome of fleeting beauty. You can't love everything for being ephemeral, but you can't forget to enjoy something because it's always there.

The great thing is, I could probably go on for a very long time as I listed thing after thing that could get a smile out of me, and make my day, so with that, have a great, wonderful, nice, perfect day!