Blog Challenge Day #1

Blog Challenge Day #1:  Your Why

Hello Blogging Abroad community!  As I near the end of my service, I like taking the opportunity to think about why I went abroad.

So how did I get to where I am?

I have taken a handful of service-oriented trips since I was in high school.  I spent a week in Mexico (in the more underdeveloped areas) when I was 16.  In Mexico, the group I went with built a house and spent time working with the youth.  When I was 17, I was part of a group that spent two weeks in Ukraine.  During this trip, we focused on organizing and participating in a camp focusing on people with disabilities.  At the beginning of my last semester in college, I went with a group of people to Uganda for two weeks.  During these two weeks, I was immersed in the culture and we spent a large amount of our time putting on a youth camp for kids around the ages of 13-17.  Following these trips, I found that I had the desire to continue traveling, experiencing different parts of the world, and do what I can to leave a positive impact on some level.  Upon arriving back to the states after my trip to Uganda, a few different people mentioned Peace Corps.  I actually never considered applying for Peace Corps until that point.  It sounds like a perfect fit for me, so I applied.  I had an interview beginning of May 2013 and I received my invitation to serve as a health Peace Corps volunteer in Ethiopia that following September.  February of 2014, I found myself in Ethiopia, beginning my training.

What were my hopes when I first went abroad?

When first going abroad, I tried to tell myself not to have any expectations.  But despite that, it is difficult to have none at all.  When first going abroad, I did hope that I would learn as much as I could about a new culture and that I would have at least a small positive impact on people in my community.

What personal values and priorities influenced your choice?

As I mentioned before, my interest in continuing to travel and experience new countries and cultures influenced my choice to live abroad.  I had also just graduated from college.  I wanted to go on to graduate school, but it was not the right timing yet for it.  I wanted to spend my time gaining experience and I felt that working abroad as a Peace Corps volunteer would be a very good experience.

What challenges and sacrifices did you overcome to get here?

In all honesty, there were not many initial challenges and sacrifices that I had to overcome to get here.  One sacrifice that I had to overcome to get here was to be willing to put my education on hold for two to three years.  I knew that I would be gaining valuable experience through Peace Corps, so it was a sacrifice that I was willing to make.  Major challenges that I had to overcome to get here I faced when first arriving in Ethiopia.  It was a challenge to immerse myself in the culture, learn the language, and get used to the food.

Have you achieved some of the goals you set for yourself through this experience?

I have achieved some of the goals that I had set for myself through this experience.  I have learned some much about culture very different from mine, have learned a new culture and have had a positive influence on people that I have worked with in my community.  I have learned a lot from this experience, which ultimately is all that I could ever ask for.

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