April 3rd, 2015
We'll begin with an end.
Today marks the end of our pre-service training, our first three months of Peace Corps service. Those three months are really about discovery; one's first breaths of Ethiopian air, the first tastes of the authentic cuisine, the first solid steps on foreign soil. Those first three months broke us down and built us up at the same time in unexpected ways, in difficult and trying ways. In ways that bombard your vision with newness, and with eyes wide, you've never seen yourself or life in a clearer light.
Part of that light consists of the new Peace Corps family that surrounds us. We've formed these incredible, deep and lasting bonds with our fellow volunteers here faster than we ever thought possible. People we latch onto, united in this personal and unique struggle, people we have grown with and have grown to love over the last three months. For that I want to say thank you to each and everyone of you, for your own unique light that adds to the collective.
And now, with the support of our loved ones back home and the newly founded support of our Peace Corps family here in Ethiopia, we venture forth as individuals to honor the independent journey each of us now is faced with taking. Bravely and passionately with hope in our hearts, we embark and are blessed.
John with Ethiopian Ambassador (right) and Peace Corps Ethiopia Country Director (Left)
John with his LCF (Language and Culture Facilitator), Kahsay
Kala with Jessie in traditional, matching "habesha libs" (traditional clothing)
Kala and John with the rest of the new Tigray region volunteers
We were sworn in as volunteers, officially, on Friday, April 3rd, 2015. 57 of us. The swearing-in ceremony took place at the United States Embassy, a sweet little piece of American soil overlooking the beautiful and bizarre cityscape of Ethiopia's capital city, Addis Ababa. The grounds were so beautiful that most of us forgot that we were even away from home. Tennis courts, rolling lawns and flowering and fragrant lavender were so comforting, along with park benches and familiar trees.
The food was a fancy assortment of delicately fried vegetable samosas, potato and broccoli bites, lightly-breaded fish, and vegetable and meat kabobs; after which they served us some mighty fine chocolate cake bites and little squares of moist, unfrosted carrot cake. The amazing thing about all of this is that we are in the midst of one of many fasting seasons in Ethiopia, so all of this food (barring the meat dishes) were vegan. Good for me.
But it was a beautiful ceremony. Each of us were called by name to collect our official certificates and Peace Corps pins, shaking hands with the Ambassador and our lovely Country Director with whom we've had many opportunities to get to know already. Three volunteers were chosen to speak at the ceremony - one to represent each language group consisting of the Amharic, Afan Oromo and Tigrinya languages. I gave the speech for the Tigrinya language and was required to deliver it in both the native language and in English. Wanting to stay away from the traditional pep talk or rousing words of wisdom or advice, I wanted to really try to get at the heart of what pre-service training and my upcoming service meant to me; so I nabbed a quote from one of my favorite books, "Mockingbird" by Walter Tevis. It goes: "Only the mockingbird sings at the edge of the woods", and is a theme of the book at large. The quote is abstract and open-ended, which I like, because with an ocean of two years' time before us we are going to have a lot of time to think. To me, the quote took on four meanings in this particular light, the first having to do with the loneliness that comes from doing something different, from standing alone, and the strength that a person acquires as a result of that loneliness. The second meaning revolved around the idea of endlessly searching for something, for some missing piece of unknown form that has yet to be discovered. Third, it embodies this idea of straddling two worlds - the woods and whatever lies beyond it. And lastly, the quote (in the context of the book) resonates ultimately with hope. It channels all three previous interpretations into this one brilliant golden thread of hope moving us forward through time. It's how I've come to embody my service here in Ethiopia, dealing in loneliness, strength, perseverance, spiritual and perhaps existential fulfillment in some small way, all fueled by the hope of tomorrow.
And on that note, we end with a beginning. The beginning of our service. The beginning of the rest of our lives.
