Busy

I know I haven't posted an update in a while.  I got super busy with school and planning Thanksgiving for about 100 Peace Corps people (and you thought you were busy with those 7 cousins) which we had last Saturday.  So I promise I will post about our Thanksgiving Extravaganza this upcoming weekend.  In the meantime, here is a photo of Anita and I having our own little Thanksgiving Thursday evening while we working on planning for the Saturday one.

Poem

My friend/ camping buddy Tamra Prior (nee Dickinson) wrote this poem several years ago and it spoke to something inside of me so I saved it to my computer.  I think it describes the wanderlust that sits inside most Peace Corps volunteers and explains why we go on a bit of a walkabout when we join up.  
Life is calling, how far will you go?

The Traveler's Heir

By: Tamra Dickinson

I remember a time…
Dreaming of a far away land.
Africa, its golden sands,
The mighty temples of Peru.

India’s spices and Kubla Khan,
The great sailing ships of the day.
Columbus, Cortéz, the men of Legends,
Was I born too late for that time?

The plains of Australia,
The mountains of Tibet,
It is still there for all to see,
And still brand new to me.

The polar caps, the coral reefs,
There is still so much unknown.
Can there still be a place
Where “Here Be Dragons” ‘tis marked?

I guess I’ll have to find myself
In the deep jungle forests of Yucatán
Or the uncharted Straits of Canada
Maybe in the dark heart of the Congo

Wherever I go, wherever I am
Whatever I see, the Explorer’s Age
Is never truly dead
As long as it’s inside of me.

 

Sharing Experiences 2011

 The health volunteers in Moldova recently had our annual "Sharing Experiences" retreat.  Every year we go out to Vodul Lui Voda, a resort just outside of Chisinau.  According to one volunteer it looks like "Soviet day camp".  Old wooden structures that remind me a bit of Girl Scout camp buildings from the 70's and murals with local fairy tales.  This time I actually remembered my camera and snapped a bunch of photos.
We started the evening with snack time, then went around the table and each of us spoke about our successes and challenges.  Older volunteers offered advice when it was solicited.  We wound the evening up with drinks and socializing.  It is a great way for the new volunteers and those of us who have been here for a while to get to know each other in a less formal setting.

Lots of talking.

 This dog decided it was our guardian and would chase off the other wild dogs if they got to close.  He got a lot of treats from the table for this.  I named him Lassie.

Don't worry, this photo was staged, they aren't actually mocking her.

I saw this graffiti on the way out and since one of the other volunteers is named Cristy, I snapped a picture of it before jumping on the bus.  It says "Crysty, I love you" in Romanian.

Become a Volunteer

Warning: The next 13 minutes may change your life!

How many Moldovans does it take to change a tire?

This is a new installment in my blog that I have titled "Damn, I wish I had a camera." It is a list of things I've seen lately and really wanted to take a picture of, but had left my camera at home.


"Damn I Wish I Had My Camera" part 1


1) The police in Drochia helping the priest bless the road after new construction by stopping traffic and holding the basin of holy water for him.

2) A man in Chetrosu wearing a cap with Steamboat, my university's mascot, on it. Go Pokes!




3) The driver of my ruitera changing a tire while 10 men stood around and smoked while telling him what he should do.

Does Moldova have a future?

Hope in a post-Soviet land?

This article discusses Moldova's young adult population, the emigration trends, and life after independence.

Poem

This year Peace Corps celebrates its 50th anniversary, and due to this a good deal of creativity has come out of the PC community recently. Blogs, websites, paintings, news articles, posters, and poems have been cropping up all over the place. Below is a re-posting of a poem by a RPCV (Returned Peace Corps Volunteer- like the Marines, there are no "former" volunteers). I thought it was wonderful and decided that I had to pass it along.

50 years of Peace Corps: A Message for soon to be Volunteers

Peace Corps is a twenty-seven-month-long-commitment,

Little do you know, you are in it for life…

It all starts with that spark from someone, “Uncle Dave served in Peace Corps and he loved it”, “Do you know they work in Thailand?” or the best and the most simple, “You would be great in the Peace Corps.”

The highest compliment, the deepest calling.

And then the paper trail begins, blazing a path through a dense bureaucratic network of uploaded dreams and poorly stated ambitions.

We trace every spark believing that it will one day lead to a full fire of intention.

Really, it’s your first endurance test, and it is not a smooth process-believe me.

When volunteers start, their minds are wrapped around 1,000 different words for help, ….empower, assist, aid, facilitate, uplift,

yet no idea how to use them in a sentence. Let alone in life.

Yes, we open borders, but more importantly, minds and hearts.

Winning them, earning them with the skills of our training and the purity of our efforts.

This is something those who are new to the family realize, and eventually, eventually, 9-12 months eventually….

You will go forth from this time, and this place, toting all that you can carry of your past life and loved ones.

And then,

you serve.

Never, will you feel more alive - it will surprise you.

It is a progression of connection…

at first, you are in your head and it’s

American, meets other.

Then you get more grounded, and

volunteer, meets villager or teacher, meets student.

And then, if you are lucky, the simplicity settles in, and it’s

human meets human,

heart to heart.

It’s all right there. It’s tucked into the humble corners of each day.

Two years- will fly by.

Watch carefully or you might miss it.

Blink twice,

and it’s gone….

And then,

you will leave those same coveted, carefully packed objects turned artifacts in the fault lines of all your cultural earthquakes.

And then,

you come back.

You are returned volunteers, never former, and you try to trace the patterns of home and you stumble, and get dizzy, and people from the place you once knew ask ….

How was Malawi? Ecuador? Mauritania? Poland?

How was Nicaragua? Mali? Panama? Vanuatu? Romania? How was Tanzania?

And what did you do there?

Well,

and you will pause…

I changed the world.

I changed myself.

It’s been 50 years of sweat and smiles, moments and memories, adventure and admiration, respect and realization

and waiting and waiting and waiting,

It’s been 50 years of imagination and inspiration.

Fifty years on paper,

but we are a part of so much more.

We bring hope to the forgotten corners of the world,

and find peace at our core.

-Meleia Egger

RPCV Malawi 2008-2010

Peace Corps Recruiter, Mid-Atlantic Regional Recruiting office