HELLLLOOOOO! This officially starts my first blog ever!
Who am I? Why am I writing a blog?
Well, I'll answer that second question in a bit, but first off, here's a bit about me:
I recently graduated from college and now live in my hometown, St. Louis, MO. I attended Truman State University and graduated with a BS in Biology and minors in Spanish and Environmental Studies. While I had many incredible social experiences in college (I met some of my closest friends in good 'ole Kirksville) and learned so many interesting things from my classes, professors, and peers, I am glad to be done with school...for now at least.
I have a wonderful family (mom, dad, sister Sasha, and dog Sammi) and the best friends anyone could ever ask for. I currently work for a land and water conservation nonprofit that actually makes an impact in the St. Louis region and will be here until mid-April. In my free time, I love reading, running, hiking, doing anything outdoors, and spending time with friends (especially when they make me cry from laughing so hard).
For those of you that do not know, I will be leaving the States in early June to serve as a Peace Corps Volunteer (PCV) in Liberia, western Africa. I will be a high school science teacher. Serving as a PCV basically means you devote yourself to serving a community in another country for 27 months (3 months of Pre-Service Training, or PST, +2 years of official service). The Peace Corps is a federal program and was established in 1961 by Pres. JFK to promote world peace and friendship. In just over 50 years, over 200,000 Americans have served in 139 nations. Woah. I will be living what you may call a more "typical" P.C. experience. I will be serving in Africa, where ~40% of volunteers serve. I will also be in the education sector, which contains the highest percentage of volunteers. The other sectors are: agriculture, environment, business development, health-HIV/AIDS, youth development, and other. (For more P.C. fasts, click here.) I was originally hoping for an environmental or agriculture position in Latin America, but now I'm just happy to get a chance to serve. :-)
Credit: http://go.hrw.com
Why blog?
Told you I'd answer this question eventually. I'm not a promise-breaker.
A lot of people have asked me to blog while I'm abroad, and I promise I will do my best. I know I will undergo PST in Kakata, northeast of the capital. However, I won't know where I will live and serve until I'm in Liberia. I do know (well, I'm about 99% sure) I won't have internet service during service and most likely won't get to travel to a place to use reliable internet very often, so I will start this now and just update it as I go along. I will be a big advocate of snail mail, but blogging will help me get out basic updates to the most amount of people as possible.
Before I get into why I'm going to serve as a PCV, how I'm feeling about it, and what I'm doing in preparation, I'm going to educate you about Liberia. I might as well get some practice in now, since I am going to be an educator over there, right?
Told you I'd answer this question eventually. I'm not a promise-breaker.
A lot of people have asked me to blog while I'm abroad, and I promise I will do my best. I know I will undergo PST in Kakata, northeast of the capital. However, I won't know where I will live and serve until I'm in Liberia. I do know (well, I'm about 99% sure) I won't have internet service during service and most likely won't get to travel to a place to use reliable internet very often, so I will start this now and just update it as I go along. I will be a big advocate of snail mail, but blogging will help me get out basic updates to the most amount of people as possible.
Before I get into why I'm going to serve as a PCV, how I'm feeling about it, and what I'm doing in preparation, I'm going to educate you about Liberia. I might as well get some practice in now, since I am going to be an educator over there, right?
Okay, Liberian fast facts: ready...go!
- Official Name = Republic of Liberia
- The country is about the size of Tennessee.
- Population about equals that of Connecticut, ~3.7 million.
- The official language is English. However, there are many tribal languages (some sources tell me ~17, others tell me ~30...so basically, all you need to know if there are a lot of ways to communicate in a small area). I will be teaching in English but will have to learn a tribal language.
- Liberia was founded by freed slaves from the U.S., with help by the U.S. in 1847. The capital, Monrovia, was named after the 5th U.S. Pres., James Monroe.
- The 24th and current Pres. is Ellen Johnson Sirleaf. She is currently serving her 2nd term (reelected in 2011, first elected in 2005). She is Africa's first woman leader and has the word leaf in her last name. And she was awarded a Nobel Peace Prize in 2011. How awesome is that?!
- Liberians main staple is rice. I love rice. This could be a match made in heaven.
- They also eat lots spicy food and tropical fruits. YUM!
- Climate = hot (it's near the equator--duh), windy, and rainy from May-Oct.
- The country is recovering from 2 decades of civil war. The education system desperately needs to be rebuilt. Because of that, all PCVs in the country are in the education sector. There are only 55 schools in the entire country, and there is a low retention rate for many students, especially girls. Because of that, many PVCs are women, in order to encourage young women to continue on with their higher education.
Why Peace Corps?
Some of you may be wondering why I'm doing this whole Peace Corps thing anyways. Well, there are many reasons. But mostly, I'm doing it because I truly believe in the 3 principles of the P.C. Mission:
Also, I haven't exactly lived a life I'm 100% proud of, and while each mistake has contributed to the person I've become, I view my time as a PCV as a time for deep reflection and introspection. I am ready to start with a clean slate. I am ready to live more simplistically and more connected to nature, to the food I eat, to the people in a community. I'm also ready to do something that truly has meaning. I am ready to try to make a difference in the lives of my future students, and I welcome the experience with open arms.
1.) Helping the people of interested countries in meeting their need for trained men and women.
2.) Helping promote a better understanding of Americans on the part of the peoples served.
3.) Helping promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of Americans.
When I'm old and gray, I do not want to have a house filled with possessions; rather, I'd like to have a passport filled with stamps and a mind filled with memories from experiencing other cultures. I want to see how other peoples live and I want to live like them: eat their food, dance to their music, and joke with them in their language. I am in a pretty fortunate position in my life right now: I'm young, healthy, and educated. I could go on to work a job that I don't really like or feel forced to enter graduate school (which I would like to do eventually), but I don't want to rush things. I'm unsure about what program/school to apply for and the whole planning-for-the-rest-of-my-career/life thing seems a bit daunting to me at this point. I need some time to live life and figure things out, and serving with the P.C. will allow me to do just that. This is the perfect time in my life to do something like this. I'm in a transitional phase, people!2.) Helping promote a better understanding of Americans on the part of the peoples served.
3.) Helping promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of Americans.
Also, I haven't exactly lived a life I'm 100% proud of, and while each mistake has contributed to the person I've become, I view my time as a PCV as a time for deep reflection and introspection. I am ready to start with a clean slate. I am ready to live more simplistically and more connected to nature, to the food I eat, to the people in a community. I'm also ready to do something that truly has meaning. I am ready to try to make a difference in the lives of my future students, and I welcome the experience with open arms.
Another reason why serving as a PCV is so important to me: Tikkun olam תיקון עולם
Now a lot of you know I'm not very religious (spiritual may be a better word to use here) and I don't want to be preachy, but I believe that this Jewish belief of "repairing the world", or at least putting forth conscious effort to do so, is extremely important. Simply stated, I believe we are all members of a global community and should lend a hand to others whenever possible.
Am I scared/nervous/excited? ...Um, yes, all of the above!
But mostly excited.
Sometimes I say aloud to myself "I'M GOING TO AFRICA! AH!!!!" While I am anxious about how I will adjust to the new culture, language, food, climate, cultural (and gender) norms, and challenges of being an educator, I am ready. I've been wanting this since I was 16 years old (I'm 23 now). So bring it on, Liberia!
In preparation for my departure, I am trying to do more things on my own and not turn to friends/family every moment I need to vent, seek advice, etc. because I will need to learn to problem solve and deal with my emotions on my own. I am also taking kickboxing classes, for many reasons, but mostly because I think "it's better to be safe than sorry". I'm trying to eat smaller portion sizes and eat mostly grains, fruits, and veggies, since that will comprise most of my diet. One hurdle I still have to overcome is learning to eat meat again. Being vegetarian is HARD in the P.C. (imagine: culturally-awkward situation in which white girl makes a fuss over meat in her stew), and their animal agriculture practices align with my animal ethics, so I'm going to become a carnivore again. I really don't have a strong desire to do this but will have to so I don't get sick jumping right into eating meat again in Liberia. I am also trying to spend time with friends before I leave. I'll be traveling to LA, Utah, Boston, and NYC before I leave, but while I'm in STL, if you ever want to hang out, let me know! I literally have a laundry list of things to do and places to see before I leave, so why not help me cross some things off the STL bucket list?!
Things I'll miss miss while I'm gone: hot showers, cheetos! (and any other junk food), American music, random text messages and phone calls with friends, and of course, my family. While they drive me crazy most of the time, I'm going to miss them a lot.
Things I won't miss: being addicted to my phone/internet, first world problems, driving, and spending money on things I don't really need
Yes, I'm almost done. I know it's been long. I have trouble keeping things concise.
Lastly, I'm looking forward to my time as a PCV in Liberia and would most graciously appreciate your support, both now and while I am there. (Please share your music with me now so I can listen to it while I'm there, and please send me letters!) No one knows what the future holds, but as long as I take it one day at a time, I know I will make it through. :-)
