Leavin' On A Jet Plane

By John Denver

All my bags are packed
I'm ready to go
I'm standin' here outside your door
I hate to wake you up to say goodbye
But the dawn is breakin'
It's early morn
The taxis waitin'
He's blowin' his horn
Already I'm so lonesome
I could die.

So kiss me and smile for me
Tell me that you'll wait for me
Hold me like you'll never let me go
cause I'm leavin' on a jet plane
Don't know when I'll be back again
Oh babe, I hate to go.

There's so many times I've let you down
So many times I've played around
I tell you now, they don't mean a thing
Ev'ry place I go, I'll think of you
Ev'ry song I sing, I'll sing for you
When I come back, I'll bring your wedding ring.

So kiss me and smile for me
Tell me that you'll wait for me
Hold me like you'll never let me go
cause I'm leavin on a jet plane
Don't know when I'll be back again
Oh babe, I hate to go.

Now the time has come to leave you
One more time
Let me kiss you
Then close your eyes
I'll be on my way
Dream about the days to come
When I won't have to leave alone
About the times, I won't have to say.

Oh, kiss me and smile for me
Tell me that you'll wait for me
Hold me like you'll never let me go
cause I'm leavin on a jet plane
Don't know when I'll be back again
Oh babe, I hate to go.

But, I'm leavin' on a jet plane
Don't know when I'll be back again
Oh babe, I hate to go...

Growing up with a seminarian for a father, he had summers off for vacations but no money for flights to Mexico or Hawaii... instead we would all stuff ourselves into whatever beat-up car we had in our possession, and we would take off for a wild destination (New Jersey, Florida, the Rocky Mountains, anywhere my dad could fish...) My dad loved to drive and while he drove he loved to listen to John Denver. It only takes a moment for something to catch a child's imagination, and this song did it for me... I could see the inevitable plane taking off, I could hear the difficulties of goodbyes and the yearning to stay that extra minute, yet at the same time the music with it's pop-y rhythm and jingle jangle tune and Denver's oh-so laid back voice enticed me into a world of jetsetting dreams. Well, here I am: from Toronto to Vancouver, to Montreal, to Vancouver and back to Montreal, with trips to London, Paris, Israel, New York City and Dallas in between. Here I am moving to Seoul with my husband and toddler in each hand. All my bags are packed, I'm ready to go, I'm standing here outside your door, I hate to wake you up to say goodbye...

Love you. Miss you. Keep in touch.

Here's another favourite rendition of the song by Chantal Kreviazuk:

Next American Idol

Jordan and I recently made a trip out to Best Buy where she discovered Guitar Hero. She knew exactly what to do without any instructions.

Happy Mother's Day

Isaiah 66:10-14

"Rejoice with Jerusalem and be glad for her, all you who love her; rejoice greatly with her, all you who mourn over her. For you will nurse and be satisfied at her comforting breasts; you will drink deeply and delight in her overflowing abundance." For this is what the LORD says: "I will extend peace to her like a river, and the wealth of nations like a flooding stream; you will nurse and be carried on her arm and dandled on her knees. As a mother comforts her child, so will I comfort you; and you will be comforted over Jerusalem." When you see this, your heart will rejoice and you will flourish like grass..."

Mom, you taught us, showed us and provided for us the comfort of the LORD. Thank you for being the extended arms of Christ for us. We love you so much.

My Little Opera Star

Bubbles Bubbles

A Family Landscape

Welcome to Taiwan

Drew: "So do you feel like you know me better now that you've seen Taiwan?"

Sarah: "Hmm... I don't think 'better' is the right word... I have a fuller picture of who you are."


At the end of February, Drew, Jordan and I took a trip to visit his family in Taiwan. It was Drew's first visit since marriage and fatherhood. Seeing the country and experiencing two weeks of Taichung City captured my heart for his family and his origins. There was something very magical about seeing Drew amongst his aunts, uncles and cousins. He fit right in. I saw where Drew got his eyes, his forehead, his nose, his mouth, his face shape and even his hairline!!! I could finally tell what features came from which side of his family, his mom's or his dad's, and I could imagine by looking at Drew's uncles what he may look like in the future.



There's a scene in one of our favourite films, "Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind" when Kate Winslet's character hides herself in Jim Carrey's earlier memories and as a result comes to know him more intimately as she shares these moments with him. This is how I felt as we walked down the streets of Taiwan, eating street food from his childhood, drinking his favourite hot soy milk in the mornings and papaya milk in the afternoons. His favourite all-in-one sticky rice breakfast, and his love for Taiwanese style crepes with egg. The smell of Taiwan. The humidity. I discovered some of the intangible impressions made on a person by the city of their birth and of their family.


Most importantly I finally figured out Drew's palate. Early in our marriage I would try to recreate some of his favourite dishes. However after a year I gave up, realizing that it was easier for me to learn to cook Korean food because I knew what it was supposed to taste like. All I knew about Taiwanese food was what Drew tried to explain, and much of my experiments relied on cookbooks and recipes online, but being in Taiwan, I finally understood what balance of flavours Drew's palate was seeking. I learned that food and its comforts are more than satisfaction of an empty stomach, but rather, taste and memory go hand in hand. Not only of vivid distinct memories, but moreso abstractions: the sense of fondness, of security, of contentment, of family, and of identity.


Drew however discovered that his palate had also changed since meeting me. With each meal we enjoyed the same things, we craved the same things, or wanted to try the same things. We realized how similar our palates had become. Reminding usthat Drew and I are creating our own landscape with Jordan.



Jordan was a trooper on the flight, with all the traveling and the jetlag. She fit right in as she joined the masses on the street: window shopping, eating fresh orange tomatoes, soy boiled eggs, and of course the very Taiwanese beef noodle soup. She would entertain strangers like she was on Broadway, singing, dancing and smiling her toothy smile.

My Baby Turns 2

Today is Jordan's 2nd birthday. Why the half-eaten cake? Well, we actually had the cake yesterday to celebrate her birthday with friends at family fellowship. Yes, I brought home the leftovers. I figured, why buy a new cake when she doesn't even like cake, but she loves the birthday song (she'll sing it all day long to herself), and she loves blowing out the candle. So I figured why waste a good thing when she is so readily entertained by it. Besides in a few years, she won't be so easily fooled... I might as well enjoy it while I can, no?

I made her favourite (and it's also the traditional Korean birthday soup) mi-yuk gook for dinner, among her other favourites: fish, avocado and rice. Plus she ate her dinner in her pajamas--her favourite thing to wear. It was definitely a day catered to Jordan.