One Year Service

5/17
G10 is now one year into service.  It is hard to image even what I was doing one year ago.  How scary it was coming to site.  Trying to figure out what the heck I was doing in the middle of rural Ethiopia, or what I was going to do with myself for two whole years here.  Now, some days I can honestly say I still ask the same questions.  But, some days I can't help but wonder about how I am in Africa, living, and working among new friends and people I could never have imagined a year ago.  I'm reading a book now called "One Hand Does Not Catch A Buffalo."  It is a book that was created as one in a series about the development of Peace Corps and to celebrate its fiftieth anniversary.  Reading it is reinforcing the amazing history I have found myself a part of. 
For those of you who really don't know what Peace Corps is, or what we REALLY do I want to explain a little.  For that I am going to add a little history first.  The PC was proposed several times before it was actually adopted.  When it was put before President Nixon, it was rejected as just another way for people to "dodge" the draft.  Then Kennedy, as a presidential candidate, on October 14, 1960 asked students at the University of Michigan at 2 a.m. how many would be prepared to give years of their lives working in Asia, Africa, and Latin America.  The day after his election the new President asked Sargent Shriver to form a presidential task force to report how the Peace Corps should be organized, and to make it happen.  Within one month the report was presented to the president on the morning of Friday, February 24, 1961 with the promise that "If you decide to go ahead, we can be in business by Monday morning."  From that, the PC was conceived with the goals of "contributing to the development of critical countries and regions; promoting international cooperation and goodwill towards this country; and contributing to the education of America and to more intelligent American participation in the world."  To this day the Peace Corps still works towards these same, slightly reworded, ideas. 
In February, 2014, I joined the ranks of Peace Corps volunteers to train for Peace Corps service.  At the inception of PC volunteers had to do training such as Tarzan style rope swings into nets, and morning runs, things like language training, home stay, and yes, even drinking the local home-made alcohols remain to this day an integral part of training,  Many other things have been removed from the training program.  The main theme of every PC post in the world is integration.  Some volunteers may never have what they consider a "successful" project.  But, making household gardens, or teaching English is not what PC is about.  Sure, those may play a role in what we do, but goal two and three are all about understanding.  If we can help our community understand American culture, and bring back our host countries culture to America then we have succeeded in our service. 
All of that is great, but it doesn't really tell you what Peace Corps Volunteers really do!  We promote world peace, we spread culture, we help train people to better their lives and the lives of their countrymen.  But, what does that mean.  Well if you ask any PCV what they thought they were coming to do when they joined PC, nine times out of ten they will say "I wanted to change the world."  Then if you ask Returned Peace Corps Volunteers what they did they will say I am the one that changed.  We who join PC are the idealists.  The people who want to go out and teach a community, and see their whole communities lives change.  Then when you get into your host community and see how things really work you start to understand that probably isn't going to happen.  But, what really changes?  Other than yourself, it is the people you interact with day to day.  Maybe you teach a women to make a tippy tap to wash their hands before they feed their baby and help prevent the baby from catching a water borne illness.  Or perhaps you teach a man living with HIV how to make a bio-intensive garden so he can feed himself.  Or maybe you tutor a student and help them do better on their exams so they can get into university.  There are plenty of examples of volunteers helping to build wells to help water their entire village, but by far the the average volunteer feels their service is a success from the small actions that affect one or two people.  And, by affecting that one you better their lives.  From there that one person tells one or two people, who in turn tells one or two more.  And that one small action can change the whole community.  That is what PC really is.  The small actions, that can go on to change the world. 
So if you are thinking about joining Peace Corps what is the advice I would give you?   First of all I would say do it!  Understand that when they say it is the "toughest job you will ever love" they aren't kidding.  PC service will try you in every way possible.  You will have the worst days of your life, and the best.  I would also say come with the idea of "changing the world."  Maybe you will realize that you probably aren't going to change the world.  But it is like one of my favorite quotes "what is an ocean but a multitude of drops."  So while you might not change the world; you will be part of a history of PCVs who are changing the world and making it a better place.