"You will always be surrounded by true friends."

There were many random things left in my apartment by the previous occupier, for example, a hula hoop, an exercise ball, two plants, paper lanterns from China, a life-size-penis-shaped bottle opener, a jump rope, a world map labeled in Korean...to name a few . But possibly my favorite was a tiny piece of paper that had been removed from a fortune cookie that simply said, "You will always be surrounded by true friends."

It has recently dawned on me that I have an amazing community in Korea. In just three or four short months a beautiful array of personalities surrounds me. And it would be safe to say no two are alike. I've always thought I possibly had some sort of magnetism for good souls, but it is certainly official.

The beauty of moving to a foreign land is that you befriend almost anyone that crosses your path, opening up your social life to supreme diversity. You want to leave all options open and build up a friend base, and ultimately a support group for what you know you will inevitably feel, homesick. When homesick moments arise, you know you can turn to these people to feel home again. They make you feel comfortable, like you maybe want to stay awhile and then you are reminded that home will always be there.

The one thing that is hard about my social situation in Korea is that people are always coming and going. Friendships have an easy option of being determined by contract length, vacations, or weekend getaways. But the good ones, I clench on to.

Today I had to say good-bye to a friend I had met just two months ago, his girlfriend I only met two weeks ago, and her sister who I had only met today. While these people hadn't been in my life a substantial amount of time, they made a substantial impact on my life. Although we live thousands of miles apart and it could even be years until the next time I see them, we shared something many people consider rare, a candid friendship made up of genuine people. And although, I've been told these sorts of situations are rare in one's life, I know I will always be surrounded by true friends...no matter which speck of Earth I have paused on.