This week, something happened at the high school where I teach in South Korea that made me pause. My elective course Mythology & Psychology: The Myth of Theseus filled up completely—on the very first day of registration. Twenty-five students signed up immediately, leaving no seats open.
On the surface, it’s just numbers on a school system screen. But to me, it speaks to something deeper. These students are voluntarily choosing a class that isn’t about test scores or college prep, but about conversation, reflection, and the strange power of old stories to help us understand ourselves. They come willing to wrestle with myth in English, across cultural and linguistic barriers, and still—the seats vanish faster each semester.
I think that says something important: young people are hungry for meaning. They want stories that help them think about who they are, who they’re becoming, and how to face the unknowns of life. And that’s exactly what mythology is for.
Part of why I share this here is because I know my time in Korea is finite. One day soon, I’ll bring this kind of work back to South Africa, aiming to plant it in schools, universities, and communities there. Seeing these courses resonate here gives me hope that the need is universal—and that there’s a place for this kind of learning wherever people are willing to listen and reflect.
For now, I’m grateful—and a little in awe—that Theseus and his long road of trials still has something to offer teenagers in 2025.
For a taste of what we cover in the course, check out The Inward Sea Podcast Hub page and choose where you want to listen!
That is AWESOME.
Looks like you’re making a great impression on the kids in their formidable years and it’s really inspiring to see the youth gravitate once more to storytelling; which is no doubt the oldest custom we have, that has binded us and bonded us together, and perhaps even instructed in our evolution culturally, technologically and spiritually