This Year

Well it’s been exactly one year since I left for Togo and this whole Peace Corps adventure began. I thought it would be a two year stay in West Africa. Togo was everything I had hoped it would be and better. Truly the best time of my life. I plan on returning to the motherland someday. That’s the goal. It’s terrible what happened and I miss it dearly (my friends, my family, my village). But shit happens. This past year has been a whirlwind and I could not have imagined I’d be where I am right now.

I’ve been on the move a lot this year and it has been a great test of my adaptability. In the past year I’ve lived with 6 different families, speaking 5 different languages between them, and all of those experiences have been wonderful and unique in their own way. For someone who used to be relatively shy, I’d say I’ve grown a lot. It’s been a testing year with plenty of ups and downs but it’s been made beautifully clear to me how blessed I am to have such wonderful people in my life and for that I thank you.