My Journey and Weekly ruminations

Preface: Yes, the title is grateful dead quote.  If these past couple weeks have taught me anything it’s this: life happens wherever you are, whether you make it or not. This is a quote made by the character of Uncle Iroh from the TV series Avatar: The Last Airbender (a show I highly recommend watching, it has aged so so well).  I was in a state of shock a couple weeks ago when I moved into my site. When I got into the house, I immediately got to work setting up my house and unpacking. After some time to reflect, I did this because I was sick of not feeling settled and I also was so nervous about moving into my new community. But after these couple of weeks those anxieties have melted away to make room for new ones. School starts Monday, I begin my job and I begin my journey of trying to make an impact in Illubabor. I was talking to a very close friend of mine and we were talking about all of our doubts and worries. We came to the conclusion that there was always going to a point where

So! Here I am, in Illubabor, at my home for the next waggaa lama (two years). It’s such a beautiful spot; i’m smackdab in the middle of yayo forrest which is a micro climate that is like nothing else I’ve ever seen. There are caves that expose geologic features that are only present here and in Iceland. The land is almost as beautiful people that live on it. This country and the people within it surprise me everyday, my compound family at my site was welcoming me with open arms into their family. They have given me a home that has two rooms,  that are 4 meters by 4 meters each. That is massive for peace corps standards. I really can’t say enough good things about my living situation. I’m in a compound with many c hildren that were just sitting in the threshold of my home watching me set up everything. I have concrete floors and nicely painted walls and electricity! Which is a lot more than what can be said about others in my cohort. I was also able to visit my hub town prior to my arri