It turned out that I had been feeling unhealthy for a reason. I was diagnosed with tongue cancer. I underwent major surgery at Korea’s National Cancer Center (국립암센터), having a golf-ball-sized tumor removed. I spent 3 weeks in the hospital, missed 3 months of work, underwent a tomographic radiation treatment, and spent a major portion of my life savings. By the end of the year, the cancer was apparently beaten but I had long term impacts on quality-of-life that left me wondering why I was bothering; nevertheless, I continued teaching in Ilsan. That was near-death experience number three.
[This entry is part of a timeline I am making using this blog. I am writing a single entry for each year of my life, which when viewed together in order will provide a sort of timeline. This entry wasn’t written in 2013 – it was written in the future.]
