Over and Out

Well dear readers, the time has finally come. Here on the eve before my departure into the unknown this looks to be my last entry for at least a couple of months. Before the next time I have a chance to update this blog the Peace Corps will have made a man out of me (or at the very least an awkward adolescent).

The question most asked of me right now is whether or not I am feeling "insert emotion (e.g. excited, nervous, itchy, etc.) here" about the next step. A justified question, indeed quite deserving of a thoughtful answer. To be perfectly honest, up until this point I have been entirely too occupied preparing for the next step to spend any significant amount of time or energy fretting over it. I will say that there is a fair amount of uncertainty about what the next two years hold in store for the protagonist of this story. Here I am, a nurse practitioner, going from a country where my role in the health care field is poorly understood by members of the public and health care professionals alike, to a country where nurse practitioners are essentially non-existent. Additionally, I'm stepping as a person who refrains from eating meat into a culture which has no concept of vegetarianism. On the facade it would appear that part of who I am simply does not exist in the place I am going.

Despite the uncertainties surrounding this latest adventure my confidence remains high. Even if no one else understands my mindset, words, or actions, I continue to have faith in the path before me. Over the next two years there will undoubtedly be highs, lows, lows which at first seem to be highs but are later revealed to actually be lows, and just plain embarrassing moments, know that through it all this is the place that I am choosing to be and have no regrets or second thoughts about this course.

And so, with my bags...um...mostly packed, my eye turns to the east (whilst the other points to the south giving me a Cookie Monster type appearance) and as it does the proverb "Mtu ni watu (a person is people)" enters my mind. Certainly the path up to this point has been filled with wonderful people, without whom I would not be where I am now. So while it is sad to part with many of the people whose giving nature has helped me to this point, I look forward to sharing the love which has been given to me with many new friends whom I have yet to meet that I might be able to be one of the people who makes up another person.

See you from across the pond.