The End of the Beginning

Just like that, Pre-Service Training (PST) is over and we’re all officially Peace Corps Volunteers! On Tuesday we swore-in and took our oaths at the US Embassy in Kigali. We were joined by our supervisors, the Ambassador, the Country Director, and Peace Corps Staff. It was a huge celebration that concluded our training and initiated our service. It’s the end of the beginning.

I think my favorite part was seeing everyone’s outfits we made for the special event. It’s very common for people to pick fabrics from the market and bring them to a tailor with a specific design in mind, making the outfit a complete reflection of the individual. I chose to wear a “power suit” for the event and, oh man, I felt powerful.

The entire day was bitter sweet. It’s hard to believe that our three months of training went by so quickly and the following morning we all left to our sites. For most of us, this was our last time seeing each other for the next three to six months. As I’m writing this entry, I’m sitting alone at my site. I was installed a few days ago and it feels like night and day compared to PST.

This entire moment of discomfort is meant to be just that, a moment. I don’t know how or when, but one day I’ll be ready to fully embrace my new life here, even if I’m resisting it now.

During PST I was constantly surrounded by 70 volunteers, our teachers, PC staff, my host family, and I rarely had any free time to myself. However at site, it’s just me, I’m all alone, and I have too much time. The closest volunteers are either a 1.5 hour walk or a 50 minute walk and a 30 minute bus ride away. I feel alone and unprepared. I don’t have any furniture, my mattress is on the floor, and I eat on the ground out of my sauce pan because I don’t have any plates. I wish moving into a new place was as easy at it is in the States where I could go to a Costco, Target, or CVS to get food and the necessities, but my old life doesn’t fit me anymore. This entire moment of discomfort is meant to be just that, a moment. I don’t know how or when, but one day I’ll be ready to fully embrace my new life here, even if I’m resisting it now.

When I decided to make a blog about my experience as a Peace Corps Volunteer, I made a promise to myself and to anyone reading to show all the good parts and the bad parts. I don’t want social media to show a warped version of my experience where it’s only ups and highs and no downs and lows. I want to be real, raw, and vulnerable with you.