These are excerpts from the Sun Hwa Times, the newsletter for second-generation teens studying in Korea.

Chusok is a Korean holiday when Koreans visit their relatives and ancestors graves. It is kind of like Thanksgiving. More than half of Koreas population visit their relatives. Many kids from our dorm went to visit their Korean relatives. Because of Chusok we got to miss three days of school. We all received man Won (10,000 Won) for Chusok. The day before Chusok we had a free day. That was basically a day to do what you wanted, like sleep, go out and stuff like that. The next day was Chusok. For Chusok, all of us had to make Dok, a Korean food which is like muchi. It is made out of rice and is filled with a sweet grain. All the guys had to make at least one successful one, but the girls had to make three. We also heard that if a girl makes good Dok, she will receive a handsome husband. Then for lunch we all took the Korean money we had received to go out to a restaurant. We chose Chiles. The food was good and we all had lots of fun. That night we got dinner made by the high-schoolers.

Every year Koreans celebrate Chusok. Chusok is a holiday for Koreans when they celebrate the harvest. Most Koreans go and visit their relatives (major traffic jams!)perhaps three-quarters of the people.

Here at Sun Hwa dormitory, we had Thursday, Sept. 24 through Sunday, Sept. 26 off from school. (Yeah!) On Thursday we just got to hang out, sleep and study a little bit. A lot of folks from the dorm went to visit relatives who live in Korea, so the dorm was very empty. After lunch the girls and some boys made Dok. Its rice cake with either potato or sesame seeds in it. It was difficult at first, but finally we made them right. The reason it was so difficult was because they need to be in the shape of a half-moon. Some girls put faces on the Dok. We listened to music and sang along. The Japanese girls were making Dok, too. The girls who make Dok are supposed to have a good blessing. So all the girls who were there made Dok.

On Friday we went to Chiles restaurant for lunch to have American food. It was verrrrrry yummy. Afterward we could go wherever we wished. Some went shopping, others back to the dorm. We wanted to see a movie, but one movie had already started, another was rated R, and third we didnt want. So we ended up not seeing any, and took the subway home.

Saturday we started our DP workshop prepared by the middle schoolers. We took notes on the speeches they gave us on "The Human Fall," "Our Fallen Natures," "Resurrection" and "Fathers Life." There were more but those were just a few. We listened to three speeches per day for two days. In between the speeches we would join our discussion groups. Surprisingly, we were suddenly told to prepare skits in 45 minutes. They were very funny and inspiring.

Usually Chusok (Korean Thanksgiving) is a time of relaxing, doing nothing, and enjoying the fact that theres no school.

But for the second and third grade middle-schoolers it was a time of dedicated planning and preparation. The reason we were working, instead of playing, was that for the last two days of our four-day weekend, it was our job to organize a DP workshop. For many of us it was our first time giving lectures, and even though we spent a lot of time preparing, it was really hard to stand in front of sixty students and give a lecture for the first time. Each middle schooler prepared a lecture. The first day, Risun Jager and David Freeland each did half of Chapter 1, and Mitsuru Kubo gave her lecture on the Fall of Man. On the next day, Young-Il Loew did Resurrection, Hanna Fuetsch explained the internal reasons for the world wars, and Anmar Cromwell told short stories about Fathers life.

Even though it was difficult and we were inexperienced, everyone did their best and it turned out to be a very good workshop. At first it was hard because people were tired and upset that we had to have a workshop over a holiday. It took a united effort to raise the atmosphere, and it might never have succeeded had it not been for Tamikos touching testimony. The second day was much better, for people were alive and listening, and you can imagine our joy in seeing our transfixed younger brothers and sisters (dongsengs) learning and eager to learn more.

To wrap up our little workshop, every group prepared a short skit and performed it in front of everybody. In conclusion, it was a success and even though it could have been better, everyone learned something valuable, including the ones who prepared it.

On Oct. 31, our dormitory celebrated Halloween with a bang! We planned it out for a while and decorated liked crazy. So what we ended up doing was that the sisters floor decorated their rooms like haunted houses, mazes, game rooms or whatever and the brothers did the same. Then the sisters went up to the brothers floor and the brothers went to the sisters floor to trick-or-treat. Afterward we had a party in the cafeteria. You werent allowed to come unless you were fully dressed in a costume. There were gangsters, clowns, geeks, squooshes, woofs and qoofs. So sweet! We started the party off by introducing ourselves. Then we had two skits. The first was very long, done by the brothers, about how they got a band together. It was awesome. The second one was done by two girls (Dorielle and Linde). It was about how nerds can be good friends and how gangsters have feelings. It was very deep. After the skits we danced to specially chosen music picked out by ourselves. Everyone was free and some of us totally let go and ran wild. We had punch (alcohol-free, of course) and homemade cookies. At the end of the party we chose the best costumes. The winner was a Prep girl dressed as The Hunchback. All in all, everyone loved the party and had a blast. Im sure it was one of the best Halloween experiences well ever have.

All the people in the Western program woke up at normal time (7am) on Fri., Nov. 12, 1999. We had morning service and ate breakfast. Then we went to Young Jin Nims Seung Hwa Ceremony in the Sun Hwa school theater, and when we came into the main room, I saw a lot of flowers on and around his coffin and a picture of him on top of it. We started the ceremony with a song and then prayed. Later many people came one by one to give testimony about Young Jin Nims life. After that people who knew him went to the front and bowed to him. We sang another song and closed with a prayer. They brought his body to the place where Dae Mo Nim and Heung Jin Nim are buried. True Parents and many other people came to the ceremony. During the events I was thinking about how it was for True Parents to lose one of their sons, and it was a sad feeling.

When we got to the Little Angels Performing Arts Center on Fri., Nov. 12, everyone was singing. We quickly found places on different balconies, and stood waiting. On stage was Young Jin Nims coffin, surrounded by hundreds of flowerpots full of flowers, one for each country, and a huge photograph of Young Jin Nim. The atmosphere was sad. We were mourning the death of a True Child, and every heart felt the loss. We heard a prayer from Rev. Yu (the FFWPU leader of Japan), and then the True Children performed the hun hwa, the lighting of special urns. There were several speeches, and more leaders added to the flames of the urns. During one speech, it was explained exactly how Young Jin Nim fell off the balcony, and we also heard some words from Young Jin Nim which had been received through a medium. After the Seung Hwa ceremony, we followed Young Jin Nims coffin outside to a van beautifully decorated all over with flowers. It would bring the coffin to the True Familys graveyard, or rather won jon (palace), where Heung Jin Nim and Dae Mo Nim are also buried. Shannon and I caught a ride to the won jon with my church leader, and there we heard True Father speak and saw the True Children and the leaders throw earth on Young Jin Nims coffin. True Father talked about how we shouldnt let Young Jin Nims death just be a waste, and that we should channel our indignation, rise up, and build Gods heavenly kingdom. Young Jin Nim will be with us.

On Dec. 4 and 5, we went to Chung Pyung. Wed already gone to Chung Pyung for True Childrens Day, but this time was different. We were going to the workshop.

In the morning we took two public buses, then we took another Chung Pyung bus to the gate. We all met up in the basement. We settled down and put our bags down in the cabins where all the activities would take place. Dinner came, and then ansu! It started out with clapping. People sang as loud as they could and the drum kept a good beat. This first ansu was probably the one which hurt the most. Then we had some free time. We gathered again to watch a movie about Dae Mo Nims life and the temple and future plans at Chung Pyung. I discovered so much from the movie. Then came the second ansu, just as powerful as the first. I felt so refreshed and full of energy. Inside I could feel like it was a new beginning and that the bad spirits were going away. It was getting close to midnight, so we purchased holy candles and gathered around the Tree of Love. At midnight we prayed very deeply. A lot of people started to cry. Everything lasted until about 1am. Before going to sleep we helped others get their sleeping bags.

At 6am we got up and prayed at all the trees. It was really early and pitch dark. We scrambled to go to each tree in order and drink the Water of Life. At each tree we prayed and repented for specific sins. There were five trees: the Tree of Love, Tree of Heart, Tree of All Things, Tree of Loyalty, and all the way up the hill the Tree of Blessing. After breakfast there was ansu, and then Dae Mo Nim talked to us. She talked about various subjects. Once she talked directly to us second generation. She said to keep pure and look at us Gop students the whole time. She talked for over two hours. We did our last and final ansu, and then came the ancestors liberation ceremony. We put all of our effort into it to get as much out of it as possible. We were all sore when we had to leave.

Chung Pyung was such a great and cleansing experience. And when we go again, I hope we have a good attitude and experience.

On Sat., Dec . 4, we went to Chung Pyung for a very good spiritual experience. As we did ansu there, I believe we all got rid of some of our evil spirits. After this, we all felt that the spirit world surrounding us was very high. I will now relate this experience to you.

It started out one day before we let, when we were told that we were going to Chung Pyung for the weekend. Whoa! We had all heard stories about Chung Pyung and thought it to be bizarre. We were told about what would be happening there, what we would do, what to pray about, the attitude we should have, and so on. The following day we left for Chung Pyung.

We were crowded onto a bus headed for the main bus stop where we would catch a bus to Chung Pyung. It was fun because we were all standing up and the bus was bumping all over the place. When we arrived at the main bus stop we were loaded onto a much less crowded bus where most of us had seats. We slept from there to the next stop, where we were loaded onto separate shuttled buses taking us to Chung Pyung. At Chung Pyung there was a heavy mist, green grass and a huge temple which I will explain about later. We all finally arrived at the temple and our teacher, James Sonsaengnim, checked us in. We went down to the Shikdang (dining room) and organized a buddy system. We were given radios and told that our first ansu session would be that night in lecture hall #7. We were released for the next two hours to do as we wished. We hung around, kicked some ice around, ate dinner and waited for the first session.

When it finally came, we crowded into the hall and prepared. A short "Welcome to Chung Pyung" speech was given, and three men came out on the stage and started singing. We all clapped and sang the song. As the song wore on, the atmosphere began to get high. We were carried by the spirit and began clapping and singing louder. Then the actual ansuing began. I was hitting the person in front of me hard, but the person in back of me was much too gentle. I felt I did not get enough out of her soft strokes. Then we began hitting ourselves. The good spirit world was taking over, the rhythm of the song, the pounding of the drum, the ansuing, were everything. It was all you could think of. At first it hurt, but as your spirit soared higher and higher, you overcame physical pain and really punished your evil body, sending evil spirits scattering for places to hid. It felt better than anything Ive ever done. I wanted to rid myself of spirits more than anything. I felt that I must hit myself the hardest, sing the loudest. Then suddenly it was over. They told us to leave, to get fresh air and water, and come back soon for the next session. We did, and the next session we listened to Dae Mo Nims life story. It was amazing what she had gone through in the church. It told about Mrs. Kims preparations to receive Dae Mo Nims spirit and the sacrifices she made. We learned that the design for the temple was from God. True Father explained that, and he oversaw each step making sure it was perfect. After this, we all went out to pray at the Tree of Love. I purchased a holy candle and prayed for the longest time. The next ansu session was even better. Now that physical pain had been overcome, I was prepared to really punish myself for my sins. I did this, and like the other time, it was over too soon. Finally, we went to sleep.

The next morning, I woke at 6am and set out to pray at all the trees. Starting with the Tree of Love, I went through Heart, Loyalty, Tree of All Things, and finally the Tree of Blessing. I prayed hard at all these, and prayed sincerely. I confessed many sins and felt Gods love.

Following the trees, I went and ate breakfast. After that we went to the lecture hall for another ansu session. After that, Dae Mo Nim came out and spoke to us. We couldnt understand it all, but then translation came on and we could. She spoke directly and severely to us at one point, telling us we must never, ever fall. The speech ended, and she led us in ansuing and ancestors liberation. It ended all too soon.

After that, we ate lunch and returned to the dorm. I believe that everyone should go to Chung Pyung, for it is a great experience. We learned quite a lot there and had many good experiences. I want to thank True Father for making such a place.

I started my day at 8am. As I was changing, I was still exhausted from shopping the other day, which was Christmas Eve. Anyway, it was time to go downstairs to the prayer room to open our presents.

Around the middle of November, each student received a "secret child" (another student) for whom we were supposed to buy Christ presents. So everyone would receive presents from their "Secret Santa" and would give presents to their "secret child." Also, whats very exciting about this experience is that no one knows who their Secret Santa is. Of course, this whole process is supposed to be a secret.

Every year the teachers assign two or more students to make a traditional chimney for Santa. So this year, two students volunteered to help build a chimney: Kashi Yoshida and Masjo Ward. They built the best chimney of all time; of course, they had the help of the other GOP brothers and sisters.

Also, every year everyone is supposed to make any kind of stocking of their choice for their secret child. It could be a regular plain stocking or a beautiful and intricate stocking.

On Christmas day, I went to the prayer room for the opening of the presents. Everyone was gathered in a circle with our presents in front of us, and one by one we were supposed to try to guess who our Secret Santa was. Eventually we all found our who our Secret Santa was, and we opened our presents. For the rest of the day, we were free till dinner, when we ate turkey with salad and eggnog. Good!

After dinner we finished the day at Hansan church, singing Christmas songs.It was a great and new experience to celebrate Christmas in a different country.

During our two-day DP workshop we were given very inspirational advice to help us in our everyday life. In addition, we were told about the difficulties others went through in order that we Second Generation might exist.

The first three lectures, given by Mr. Brazil, were absolutely "eye popping"!! They were very entertaining. He stimulated us to interact with him and the DP. He explained very thoroughly about the purpose of our lives, the fall of man, the purpose of the messiah and the mission of the Second Generation. What really made us think was when he said the Second Generation should be able to achieve greater things than Father has done.

To keep us restless kids from bursting, the teachers allowed us to have a game of soccer and Matanage which ended up in a snowball fight.

The second day of the workshop we had three more very inspiring lectures, given by our teacher James Sonsaengnim. He talked about how our attitude should be in times of indemnity moments. This really helped us to think about how we can change for the new year. He also explained very thoroughly about the three families, Adams, Noahs and Abrahams. Everything he said suddenly made sense.

Our overall experience was one which well never forget. We are all extremely grateful for the opportunity he had to learn more about the incredible Divine Principle.

On Dec. 30, the students had a D.P. lecture contest. Everyone was given a subject to talk about and time to work on it. We had a piece of cardboard to write or draw on about our lectures. Everyone had very interesting diagrams about their lectures. We were given five minutes to finish talking about our lectures. Everyone did very well. Personally, even though I did not win, I think I did okay. The judges chose four different winners for the best diagram, best content, the best presentation, and the overall best. Takamasa-hyung won for best diagram, Masjo won for best presentation, Karin won for best content, and In-Young won overall. At the end, everyone won a prize for doing well.

Everyone learned something from each others lectures and it was fun.

I live in Des Moines, Iowa and during my life there, I realized I was not living a very God-centered life and it was tearing me apart inside. I could feel myself taking a path that was bringing me further from God and my parents.

One day my mom suggested I try out for this program in Korea. I just told her I would try, because I was confused about my life and had nothing else to do. I took the test and to my surprise was accepted. Now I was really confused back then and Satan was telling me I didnt want to go and I was listening but somehow I ended up going and here I am.

My experiences and relationships here for the 2 1/2 years I was here were probably the best things which have ever happened to me in my life. Now I realize that Im not progressing much anymore. I found the spiritual foundation I needed and its getting to the point where I just want to be here for the very close friends. For these reasons Ive decided to leave.

I will miss this place and all the great people Ive met here but I need to get on with my education and other things I cant get here. I believe I have the foundation to keep myself pure and to help and influence others. I will be a strong person and I will accomplish many things.

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