Breathing Freely

I felt like I was holding my breath after my interview with the Peace Corps because I knew I could be waiting for over a month before I would find out if I got a nomination...so imagine how surprised I was last Friday when I got a call from my recruiter! I was terrified to answer it thinking that maybe it was going to be bad news, and when she told me that she was nominating me for an Environmental Ed position in North Africa I nearly gave myself emotional whiplash I got so excited. I don't think I've every gone from terror to elation that fast in my life! She said the post required someone in good physical shape who could do a lot of walking and hiking...sounds like a perfect fit! Still, I'm trying to keep myself grounded, I know its typical for your location and job description to change several times before you actually get placed somewhere. At least this means I didn't completely blow the interview! This takes a lot of stress off the job search too because I know now that I'm only looking for something temporary so I might as well stay in NJ.

Next step is do do my medical and dental evaluations, so spring break is going to be full of doctors appointments. Hopefully I'll be able to get all of that done before I graduate and get booted off of my parent's medical insurance. I've looking at a couple of prospects for jobs between graduation and whenever I leave the country, but none of them provide medical benefits right off the bat so I'll have some hang time in that department.

Remember how I said I wished I'd talked a little more about wanting to make a difference in peoples lives during my interview? Well a few days after I got back to Farmville I got an email asking me to write another essay on exactly that! It took me a while to get my thoughts and feelings organized on paper but I think I managed to get my point across alright. What do you think? (ps. I stole the elephant analogy from Dr. Morrison!)



Wanting to help people is something that is such a part of my personality that it’s sometimes hard to isolate that desire and explain it. What I hope to avoid in writing this essay is coming off as an idealist who thinks she can save the planet or end world hunger by serving in the Peace Corps for a few years. I have no grandiose dreams of swooping down on some unsuspecting little village and single-handedly saving hundreds of starving babies or eradicating AIDS, but neither do I think such problems are a lost cause. The only way to eat an elephant is one bite at a time, and what I hope to accomplish by joining the Peace Corps is to take my small bite out of whatever elephant is put on my plate. I want to make a small difference in the lives of a few as a part of an organization that is making a big difference in the lives of many.

The phrase “global community” gets thrown around a lot these days. As technology bridges more and more gaps we’re becoming not just citizens of our own respective countries, but “citizens of the world.” I think the smaller the world becomes the more my responsibility to my global neighbors grows. Society today is all about the quick fix…we want a magic pill to lose weight in a week or a pyramid scheme that will make us millionaires by next month. It seems less and less people are willing to really take the time to find long term solutions to their own problems, and this carries over into how we react to problems in the world. We see starving kids on TV, so we open our wallets and donate twenty cents a day to put food on their plates right now. Instead of addressing the underlying cause of hunger in that country, lack of jobs or changing climate, we opt for the quick fix. We treat the symptoms but fail to cure the disease. The problem with short term aid is it’s just that: short term. Once the sympathy has worn off and the cameras are gone, the people of that country are no better off than they were before. I certainly have nothing against missions and service trips, there’s no doubt that they save lives and improve conditions for thousands of people, but I believe the best way to serve people is to teach them how to serve themselves. What I like most about the Peace Corps is that volunteers don’t just bounce all over a country building wells or schools, they become part of a community and work in solidarity with those people. I want to get to know my neighbors, find out what their needs are and help them meet those needs in a way that is sustainable long after I’m gone.

I’ve participated in a lot of temporary or one-time services projects; working in a community garden, packing groceries at a food bank, building houses or cultural centers, and sending care packages…but I’ve never had the opportunity to be involved in something long term. What I look forward to with the Peace Corps is the chance to roll up my sleeves and tackle more complex issues that can’t be solved in a weekend or over a summer. I want the opportunity to stand back at the end of two years and know that I helped create something that will make a lasting difference in people’s lives.

Expect the best, plan for the worst, and prepare to be surprised

I had my interview with the Peace Corps on Friday. Overall I think it went well...best advice I got was just to be myself so that's what I did. Of course its impossible not to replay something like that in your head and not come up with at least 10 more things you wish you'd said. I wish I'd talked a little more about wanting to make a difference in peoples lives on a personal level. I've definately got a heart for service, but I was afraid of coming off as one of those idealists who thinks they can save the whole world. I also talked a lot more about my interest in Environment than my interest in Health, which is technically a much better fit for my major and skill set. From what I've heard most people didn't get a nomination until about a month after their interview, so for now I'm in an odd sort of limbo and I have no idea whether or not I'll get in.

I didn't realize it until this weekend, but I've kind of put all of my emotional eggs in one basket on this one. Its not like I'm banking on getting into the peace corps in order to survive after college...I'm still applying for other jobs...but so much of my planning and forward thinking in the past year has included the peace corps. I've got to work on not getting my hopes up too high or counting any unhatched chickens.

Planning is difficult, especially about the future. Those are Yogi Berra's words, not mine. Sure, it doesn't make a whole lot of sense, but that doesn't stop it from being true...

Not knowing for sure about the peace corps also puts me in kind of an awkward situation when applying for jobs. If I knew I would be leaving for another country in the next year I would only apply for jobs in New Jersey so I could live at home and save as much money as possible. If I knew I wasn't going to get into the peace corps I wouldn't want to go back to Jersey and I'd be applying for jobs in DC, Colorado or somewhere else out west. I don't want to commit to a job in Jersey just to find out that I'll be stuck there for the next 5 years, and I also don't want to pass up a great job just because I think I'll be leaving in a year.

I guess I'll stick to Jersey for now and just keep hoping for the best.