Homecoming
After about six months away, I have been most welcomed back into the country most commonly called "The Pearl of Africa". Now, I understand that some of you may be confused because it has been quite some time since I have last blogged about my experiences in Uganda and, as far as you can tell from my site, I have never left. However, there have been some major changes in my life since that point in time and the most significant of all has been my acceptance into the Peace Corps. Never had I imagined that my unexpected journey would take so many unconventional twists (but I guess that is the point).
To be completely honest with you, I thought I had achieved my goal in returning to Uganda. I was angry and felt stripped of my ability to decide after my semester had come to an early conclusion. I did not have the proper closure that I needed because we were rushed out of the country so quickly. I was determined to come back on my own terms and thought that, in doing so, I would be satisfied. And I was in some ways. I was able to re-connect with friends, was living on my own in a foreign country, and was ready to do work some great work.
As the weeks passed and I slowly became accustomed to city life, I had forgotten about my application to the Peace Corps. Although my situation was a challenge, I was going to make the most of my time back. It was halfway through my time when I recieved an email from the Peace Corps to do an interview for Peace Corps Uganda. My only intention at the time of the interview was to gain a better perspective for the Peace Corps application process. I was not fully convinced that I was going to leave my job for the Peace Corps, especially after making a commitment to the school and my coworkers, but I knew I wanted to do the Peace Corps at some point in my life and figured it would be best to gain as much knowledge as possible.
I never anticipated that my interview would go as well as it had, that I would be offered the position so quickly, and that I would later decide to quit my job in Uganda only to move back a few months later. It was easily one of the hardest decisions I have ever made. My decision boiled down to my passion, which had drastically changed throughout my experiences. I had thought that by moving back to Uganda my life would somehow become full again. I was so consumed with coming back that I failed to realize it was not actually being in Uganda that had previously given me so much joy, but it was in what I was doing while in Uganda.
My administrative job was, in many ways, not what I had expected. This is by no means a negative statement. Oftentimes, we learn the most about ourselves in the places we never intended to go. However, as a result of my previously held expectations, I struggled immensely over the course of my time in this position. There were times that were unbearable, but I did not leave due to these moments. In fact, I have come to cherish all of my hardships during those few months because I have become a better individual having experienced them. Rather, I knew that I could not live a life in which I was simply living as opposed to pursuing.
My pursuit of the Peace Corps has proven itself to be worth the investment. After quitting my job and moving back home, I had more refinement in the Peace Corps medical clearance process. For those of you who don't know me well enough, I HATE anything related to all things medical. I hate blood, I hate needles, I hate the feeling of being in a physican's office. And as I was already behind in completing many tasks for my medical clearance, I was pushed head first into the outer limits of my comfort zone. There were times when I almost quit before I had even started and I was stressed to no end, but I somehow made it out alive and, again, am so thankful to have been streched.
Now, after returning to Uganda after my short hiatus, I have found myself in a different position than many of my other trainees. For most of my cohort, they are finding themselves in a new, exotic land full of adventures awaiting to be found. They marvel at the basics and question the societal norms in the ways that I had originally done during my first move to Uganda. I find myself slightly disheartened at these discoveries because I, too, want to be experiencing such a new wonder. When I search the depths of my soul, however, I find myself at such peace about being back in Uganda. How fortunate am I to have ended up in a place where I have had the time to cultivate love for its entire being? Never before have I made friends with people from another place that have lasted so long and so deeply because I have never once found myself in such a similar situation.
Community is of great importance to me. Over the past year and a half, my community has been greatly disturbed; I've graduated college, moved across the world three times, and worked in several different environments. In all cases, I have only had enough time to establish a quick bond with others to then say goodbye. One of my favorite aspects about being back in Uganda is that I get to come back to a place where I have a small community left. Not only do I have people whom I love here, but I get to build upon the network and establish deeper roots in a place other than home (a.k.a. the United States). I am, once again, inviting you to partake in my journey.
You are most welcome.
xoxo,
To be completely honest with you, I thought I had achieved my goal in returning to Uganda. I was angry and felt stripped of my ability to decide after my semester had come to an early conclusion. I did not have the proper closure that I needed because we were rushed out of the country so quickly. I was determined to come back on my own terms and thought that, in doing so, I would be satisfied. And I was in some ways. I was able to re-connect with friends, was living on my own in a foreign country, and was ready to do work some great work.
As the weeks passed and I slowly became accustomed to city life, I had forgotten about my application to the Peace Corps. Although my situation was a challenge, I was going to make the most of my time back. It was halfway through my time when I recieved an email from the Peace Corps to do an interview for Peace Corps Uganda. My only intention at the time of the interview was to gain a better perspective for the Peace Corps application process. I was not fully convinced that I was going to leave my job for the Peace Corps, especially after making a commitment to the school and my coworkers, but I knew I wanted to do the Peace Corps at some point in my life and figured it would be best to gain as much knowledge as possible.
I never anticipated that my interview would go as well as it had, that I would be offered the position so quickly, and that I would later decide to quit my job in Uganda only to move back a few months later. It was easily one of the hardest decisions I have ever made. My decision boiled down to my passion, which had drastically changed throughout my experiences. I had thought that by moving back to Uganda my life would somehow become full again. I was so consumed with coming back that I failed to realize it was not actually being in Uganda that had previously given me so much joy, but it was in what I was doing while in Uganda.
My administrative job was, in many ways, not what I had expected. This is by no means a negative statement. Oftentimes, we learn the most about ourselves in the places we never intended to go. However, as a result of my previously held expectations, I struggled immensely over the course of my time in this position. There were times that were unbearable, but I did not leave due to these moments. In fact, I have come to cherish all of my hardships during those few months because I have become a better individual having experienced them. Rather, I knew that I could not live a life in which I was simply living as opposed to pursuing.
My pursuit of the Peace Corps has proven itself to be worth the investment. After quitting my job and moving back home, I had more refinement in the Peace Corps medical clearance process. For those of you who don't know me well enough, I HATE anything related to all things medical. I hate blood, I hate needles, I hate the feeling of being in a physican's office. And as I was already behind in completing many tasks for my medical clearance, I was pushed head first into the outer limits of my comfort zone. There were times when I almost quit before I had even started and I was stressed to no end, but I somehow made it out alive and, again, am so thankful to have been streched.
Now, after returning to Uganda after my short hiatus, I have found myself in a different position than many of my other trainees. For most of my cohort, they are finding themselves in a new, exotic land full of adventures awaiting to be found. They marvel at the basics and question the societal norms in the ways that I had originally done during my first move to Uganda. I find myself slightly disheartened at these discoveries because I, too, want to be experiencing such a new wonder. When I search the depths of my soul, however, I find myself at such peace about being back in Uganda. How fortunate am I to have ended up in a place where I have had the time to cultivate love for its entire being? Never before have I made friends with people from another place that have lasted so long and so deeply because I have never once found myself in such a similar situation.
Community is of great importance to me. Over the past year and a half, my community has been greatly disturbed; I've graduated college, moved across the world three times, and worked in several different environments. In all cases, I have only had enough time to establish a quick bond with others to then say goodbye. One of my favorite aspects about being back in Uganda is that I get to come back to a place where I have a small community left. Not only do I have people whom I love here, but I get to build upon the network and establish deeper roots in a place other than home (a.k.a. the United States). I am, once again, inviting you to partake in my journey.
You are most welcome.
xoxo,
Emilia
The contents of this website are mine personally and do not reflect any position of the U.S. government or the Peace Corps.
The contents of this website are mine personally and do not reflect any position of the U.S. government or the Peace Corps.
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