As I am about to embark as a Peace Corps trainee, I choose to journal via this blog, weekly, perhaps monthly, for my friends, family, others who may care to traverse twenty-seven months, Romania, and the Peace Corps experience with me.
Aha! Finally! A definitive date! May 19, 2010. And my name still appears on the list! (tongue in cheek, I think) Whooppee! Our group of plebisites (30-40) gathers in Chicago on May 19 to begin our 27 month journey together. As I understand it, we spend about 36 hours in a hotel near O’Hare making sure we’ve all brought the necessary required papers and data (now, THAT’s scary!) before winging it across deep and wide waters for Romania. Also, we begin the get-acquainted process that quickly turns into a bonding for life in some cases. I’m excited to meet my teammates…from so many places, different ages, skills, experiences, personalities. So much to learn!
Brian Williams…fall of 2008…Making a Difference. After watching Brian interview a retired couple who were just finishing their two year stint with the Peace Corps, sez I, “I can do that. I must do that!” (And by the way, I did prayerfully consider it and the answer was “Go for it.”) And as if shot by cannon, I was under way….
To think that I’ll be enroute in five short weeks! This 18 month period of preparation has moved excruciatingly slowly, for the most part. And yet, the myriad
of details has more than filled whatever time was left over from daily living. From slow to frenetic. It seems that there’s not nearly enough time to accomplish so much. To put life in limbo in the States for such an extended period has been exciting and daunting. Passing on my business of 27 years, selling my home, preparing for long term storage of my worldly possession, leaving friends and life here in rural Ohio (see photo), passing on financial responsibilities to a dutiful and willing son, has been stressful and yet accomplished with the certainty that these changes are just perfect for me at this time of my life. I feel like I understand the relativity of time in a new way. Tasks done a week ago seem like a month ago and yet the present seems to both drag and flash by…and the future seems an eternity away. Doesn’t sound much like it but I am really trying to stay in the moment.
The truly rewarding part of this preparation has been learning more and more about Romania, their history, their peoples, problems and challenges, their cultures, taking a European history course with students the ages of my grandchildren. Trying to learn the Romanian language is a challenge. Which of the three languages of Romania will I eventually need to know best?
Forever keeping me on my toes has been complying with the many requirements of the Peace Corps. One can be certain if you make it this far it’s with grit and a grin, plus a big whew!
Heart strings are being pulled. Saying goodbye after thirteen years in this small rural mid-Ohio community (where friendly Walmart greeters must have found their mentors),.. goodbye to good friends, to Amish friends and co-workers, to my church, to my home, to “my” birds and squirrels. Saying adios for awhile to family, sons and daughters-in law, five granddaughters and a new grandson in England, and other special people in my life will be very hard. Thank goodness for Skype—and we’ll trust that I’ll be in a location where I can use my laptop. Family and friends can come visit. I’ll look forward to that.
So far I’ve put minimal effort in preparing or thinking about how best to approach my primary Peace Corps responsibility…teaching English in middle and/or high school. I’ll take materials I used with Global Volunteers when teaching English in China in 2005. There are too many unknowns of for whom, what, where re: teaching to devote much effort into “how” at this time. Secondary responsibilities for us as Peace Corps volunteers are to become very much involved in our communities. I look forward to finding ways to integrate into wherever I live and to find needs I can help fill there.
Stay loose, Mil. It’ll all come together…! Peace by piece.
Aha! Finally! A definitive date! May 19, 2010. And my name still appears on the list! (tongue in cheek, I think) Whooppee! Our group of plebisites (30-40) gathers in Chicago on May 19 to begin our 27 month journey together. As I understand it, we spend about 36 hours in a hotel near O’Hare making sure we’ve all brought the necessary required papers and data (now, THAT’s scary!) before winging it across deep and wide waters for Romania. Also, we begin the get-acquainted process that quickly turns into a bonding for life in some cases. I’m excited to meet my teammates…from so many places, different ages, skills, experiences, personalities. So much to learn!
Brian Williams…fall of 2008…Making a Difference. After watching Brian interview a retired couple who were just finishing their two year stint with the Peace Corps, sez I, “I can do that. I must do that!” (And by the way, I did prayerfully consider it and the answer was “Go for it.”) And as if shot by cannon, I was under way….
To think that I’ll be enroute in five short weeks! This 18 month period of preparation has moved excruciatingly slowly, for the most part. And yet, the myriad
of details has more than filled whatever time was left over from daily living. From slow to frenetic. It seems that there’s not nearly enough time to accomplish so much. To put life in limbo in the States for such an extended period has been exciting and daunting. Passing on my business of 27 years, selling my home, preparing for long term storage of my worldly possession, leaving friends and life here in rural Ohio (see photo), passing on financial responsibilities to a dutiful and willing son, has been stressful and yet accomplished with the certainty that these changes are just perfect for me at this time of my life. I feel like I understand the relativity of time in a new way. Tasks done a week ago seem like a month ago and yet the present seems to both drag and flash by…and the future seems an eternity away. Doesn’t sound much like it but I am really trying to stay in the moment.The truly rewarding part of this preparation has been learning more and more about Romania, their history, their peoples, problems and challenges, their cultures, taking a European history course with students the ages of my grandchildren. Trying to learn the Romanian language is a challenge. Which of the three languages of Romania will I eventually need to know best?
Forever keeping me on my toes has been complying with the many requirements of the Peace Corps. One can be certain if you make it this far it’s with grit and a grin, plus a big whew!
Heart strings are being pulled. Saying goodbye after thirteen years in this small rural mid-Ohio community (where friendly Walmart greeters must have found their mentors),.. goodbye to good friends, to Amish friends and co-workers, to my church, to my home, to “my” birds and squirrels. Saying adios for awhile to family, sons and daughters-in law, five granddaughters and a new grandson in England, and other special people in my life will be very hard. Thank goodness for Skype—and we’ll trust that I’ll be in a location where I can use my laptop. Family and friends can come visit. I’ll look forward to that.
So far I’ve put minimal effort in preparing or thinking about how best to approach my primary Peace Corps responsibility…teaching English in middle and/or high school. I’ll take materials I used with Global Volunteers when teaching English in China in 2005. There are too many unknowns of for whom, what, where re: teaching to devote much effort into “how” at this time. Secondary responsibilities for us as Peace Corps volunteers are to become very much involved in our communities. I look forward to finding ways to integrate into wherever I live and to find needs I can help fill there.
Stay loose, Mil. It’ll all come together…! Peace by piece.
I am currently working on my own Peace Corps application and I look forward to following your posts. Best of Luck
ReplyDeleteWe're excited to see that we can keep up with you (if that's possible). I subscribed for Ron and me. If you know French it will stand you in good stead while learning Romanian-phonemes are very similar. It really helped the years that I had Romanian students here.
ReplyDeleteGod Bless and take care,
Claudia
Aha! After emailing you, I went to this blog site to check it out, and all my questions have been answered. God bless and keep you in this significant endeavour -- and may you always find yourself in a SKYPEable location! - Judy Morris
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to your next post! - Millicent
ReplyDelete