Freedom

Freedom and independence…something we hope and strive for all of our childhood…sometimes well into our teenage years and adult life.  We dream of what it will be like to be able to make our own rules for life and do what we want, when we want.  When we finally get there, it is usually just as we had hoped for.  Some people come to wish for those blissful days of no responsibility again, but nonetheless, we get used to this responsibility and freedom.  It grows to be part of our personalities and our beings. 

Moving to a new culture that I haven’t even begun to fully understand is like starting this process all over again.  “You can’t go out after dark,” “why don’t you take someone with you,” or “have you bathed yet” are frequently spoken phrases in my new life.  Unlike childhood, however, you must answer politely as if you haven’t been keeping track of your own bathing schedule for the past 14 years.  Saturday nights of having several sets of plans to choose from and being able to hop in my car and drive 40 minutes to see my best friends are replaced by binge watching television shows and coloring in an adult coloring book in my room, because my host family goes to sleep by 9 every night. 

The struggles are real in village life, but they are not without reward.  As we adapt to these new challenges that are now our lives, we choose to not let our struggles define us.  Each step of the way helps us grow into the more patient, easy going and strong individuals we are meant to be. 

Since moving to my permanent site, I have finally been able to face the new challenges of pee buckets, pit latrines and bucket baths after living the posh corps experience in Moteti with running water and flushing toilets. I finally have my rondeval set up and it is feeling like home.  However with these new struggles have come living on the top of a most gorgeous mountain and sharing life with my new family who have taken me in as if I have always been a family member.  I have already met numerous inspiring people in my village and have been welcomed in tshivenda and in English. 

I know that as I continue through my next two years, I will grow into the person I hope to become.  As much as everyone stresses that the Peace Corps service is such a selfless journey, it would be silly to not realize how much we, as volunteers, are gaining.  This is a cultural exchange, not a donation. 

Note: this is my backyard.

That’s all folks. Peace.