If Peace Corps were a
marathon, I’d have approximately a third of a mile left.
As Madonna would say,
“Four minutes to save the world.”
I think back on the other
25.88542 miles… To the site changes and new languages acquired. To the first time I tried fried grasshoppers
and used a pit latrine. To the oath I
took and the trainings I have been apart of to pass fourth knowledge and skills
to fellow Volunteers. To the camps and
the Re-Usable Menstrual Pad workshops.
To the squished taxi rides and the sound of rain on a tin roof. To the boat rides across Lake Bunyonyi and
the mornings where roosters serve as an early alarm clock.
Time is ticking.
Today I have day two of
our youth led workshops.
Tomorrow is Thanksgiving.
Friday I might have a
vigil to attend to and a RUMPS workshop to facilitate with my girls.
Saturday I will begin to
ponder about packing, go to In Movement for programs, and will hopefully kill
a chicken with my kids for dinner.
Sunday I will get all of
my Close of Service documents in order and visit In Movement my last time as a
Peace Corps Volunteer.
Monday I leave my side of
Kampala to head to the Peace Corps approved hotel to close my bank account and
buy gifts.
Tuesday through Thursday I
will spend at the office completing paperwork, visiting the dentist, have my
exit interview with the Country Director, and will finally gong out and become
a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer.
I return back to my
Kampala home on Thursday where I will spend the following two days packing, giving
things away, and preparing for our youth camp.
Sunday the 7th,
I leave Kampala with our In Movement Dream Team for our youth camp in Kisubi,
Entebbe. That will be my final ride out
of the capital for this year. I will
look back on the smog-encrusted city with a sense of appreciation and
thanks.
Then after five days
together with my favorite people and youth who have left an everlasting imprint
on my heart, I will journey the final 18 kilometers to the airport where I will
spend ten days in Cape Town and return back home just in time for Christmas.
Of late I have done a lot
of reflection.
I can think back to times
where I was elated to be here. Then
there were times where I yearned to go home.
I can recall months where
I was busy with programs and others where I spent a majority of my time inside
my house sweeping the dust, doing laundry, and watching seasons of How I Met
Your Mother.
There were days where my
youth were the only thing that kept me in a positive mood after being constantly
harassed and discouraged.
Often times in a marathon,
or even simply running a mile, you get cramps and want to quit. You question why you started. You might even get resentful.
I can relate.
Last weekend I was getting
angry at the smallest things and I had to dig deep and see where these feelings
were coming from. Was I really angry at
the place and people who so warmly welcomed me into their country and culture
or was I angry and frustrated at the thought of leaving my home?
It definitely was the
latter.
I am finding myself
annoyed with things that simply make Uganda… Well, Uganda. I am annoyed because I do not know exactly
when I will find myself among these situations again. I do not have a definitive plan for returning
to the UG and that makes me frustrated.
I cannot give my youth a direct answer except that; “Someday I will come
back.”
In the meantime, I have restructured
my frame of mind to value these annoyances because no matter where you go and
what you do, they will be there.
And they too are to be
appreciated.
Just like completing a marathon.
Or even a mile.
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