Two weeks from today we’ll be on an airplane to Quito, Ecuador. It’s hard to believe that our departure date is so close at hand especially since we started our journey to Peace Corps Service way back in April of 2010. See this post for details. We’re looking forward to meeting our new Partners for Peace at Staging in Dallas, TX where there are sure to be name games and note-taking and sharing of expectations. Here are a few of our expectations for our Peace Corps Service.
Mari expects…
To cry—because I cry from joy, from beauty, from exhaustion, from frustration; and I’m sure to experience all of those things
To laugh—because I expect to be in situations where there is nothing else left to do
To shiver—because I’ve been to the Ecuadorian Andes and without hot showers and central heating it gets downright chilly
To write—because I’m finishing up the first draft of my YA novel and because I am excited to practice the art of letter writing
To photograph—because that’s what I do
To read—because I love to get lost in books and there will be no TV and possibly no electricity and therefore no laptop to distract me
To love—because that’s what it takes to get through the toughest stuff
To miss—because whether it’s my family, friends, or favorite meal I can’t take it with me
Paul expects…
To eat— cuy, a local delicacy of roasted guinea pig
To learn—a new language or maybe two
To live—without an smart phone. In fact this week I am getting rid of my cell phone. What a feeling of liberation!
To be challenged—in my job, in my home stay, in the language and more
To be homesick—at times, missing friends and family and yes even hot showers
To figure out what we are doing next—and to understand how our work abroad is going to help define who we are