Invitation

What a crazy couple of weeks it has been!

On May 9th, 3 days after graduation, I left for Italy knowing that I was medically cleared and placement would be trying to contact me soon.

On May 11th I got an email from placement asking for an updated resume, my final transcript, a Skill Addendum form, and my answers to a questionnaire. I payed 10 euros for 8 hours of internet (obviously i didnt need all of that time) and had all the stuff handed in that night. I also let my Placement Officer know I was in Italy and asked that he please contact me by email and not phone.

On May 16th I got an email with 9 interview questions. This was a big deal because the questions gave me a lot of clues as to where I would be going. It asked if I was still ready to leave for Asia in July, if I would mind living with a host family, and if I could ride a bike 1-3 miles a day. This just screamed Cambodia! I actually had a concert in Italy to do about 2 hours after getting this email. It took a lot to stay focused on the task at hand. I hand-wrote my answers to the questions in a journal at  restaraunt tha night, and then the following morning I went to an internet cafe in Florence and typed my answers into an email.

I returned home from Italy on May 19th. The plane landed, so I turned on my phone and started getting my bags together. Then I got a text message from my mom that said "your invitation just arrived". uhm... WHAT? So i called her and sure enough there was a big blue envelope waiting for me at my house. I told her to open it and tell me where and when!

Sure enough, I will be leaving for Cambodia on July 22nd to teach English!

I was really shocked actually. They must have overnighted my invitation or something. I hadn't heard of the Peace Corps doing that before. How crazy! So I'm glad to join my fellow K5-ers. Heres to an exciting new adventure.

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But what about Italy?

Italy was the best 10 days of my life, thanks for asking!

The best part of Italy hands down was the people I went with. I love my friends more than anything. They really get me more than anyone else has. I can't find words right now, so I'll be sappy about my friends another time. Also of course it was a blast to go with 2 favorite professors.

We saw so much in our 10 days. We were in Rome, Tivoli, Assisi, Sienna, San Gimignamo, Perugia, and Florence. Italy is a really fascinating and beautiful place and it is so rich in history, culture, and art. We saw so many cathedrals and fountains but I never got tired of it.

And of course I can't forget to tell you that we PERFORMED all around Italy. The trip was a tour for my college performing ensembles including the Chorus, Chamber Singers, and String Ensemble. Lucky me, I was a member of all 3. We had four big concerts, which were sooooo fun. We sang some amazing repertoire- such as Aaron Copland's In the Beginning, and loved every second of it. We more than just "like" that piece. I'd say were addicted to it. I also played violin with the String Ensemble (after all, that IS my major instrument lol). I got to play a solo part in a Corelli Concerto Grosso. I had never played a solo with an orchestral group before, so even though it was a small part, it was cool to do that in Italy. The string ensemble also played an arrangement I wrote of Lady Gaga's Telephone haha.

In addition to the scheduled concerts, we sang short memorized pieces in almost every Cathedral we visited. It was kind of like the flash mob concerts you see on youtube videos, except slightly more reverant (dont worry, we always got permission). The acoustics were always amazing. Every time after we sang I would melt into a puddle on the floor. It was all just an amazing opportunity.

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I have so much more to write about! Opera, Wisdom Teeth, Costa Rica, and pre-Peace Corps preparations! I'll have to try to keep up with this blog a little better.

But for now I have to go. Wisdom teeth- it's been nice knowin' ya. Time for you to be extracted.

What is right is not always comfortable/ What is comfortable is not always right

          Things are starting to sink in. I'm graduating tomorrow. But my graduation isn't like everyone else's. I don't mean that mine is more special- certainly not. We've all worked hard to get here and we've all accomplished the same thing. I mean from this point on.. things are just going to be very different. I feel like everyone is really comfortable with where they are going from here. They have their plans, their family, their friends, and most importantly each other. But me.. I'm leaving. Where? When? I don't know. And as much as I can pretend that my friends will always be there and that things wont change.. it's not true. My life will go on. Their lives will certainly go on. It's sad, but its the truth and it is one of the inevitable effects of Peace Corps service.

          Can you tell I'm oddly emotional today? Cause I am. I don't know if I feel like I'm being pushed away, or if I feel like I NEED to push myself away. Maybe it's a combination of both. Regardless, I'm just in a different place now. The last chapter of my life is closing, and a new one is beginning; this time with a whole new setting and few of the same lovable characters. I need to accept the widening gap between me and my friends and my college years.

          Devils Advocate: If you're so bent out of shape about it, then why are you doing the Peace Corps?

I've been thinking a lot about the expression "What is right is not always comfortable; what is comfortable is not always right". The Peace Corps is certainly not a comfortable path to take, but I know its the right one. The opportunity to serve another country for so long and really have an impact is irreplaceable. Sure I'm nervous and scared and all that stuff, but that doesn't mean I don't want to do it. I COULD just stay here, get a job, save some money, buy an apartment, go to grad school, etc. It would be really easy to do that and really comfortable, but I don't want to. It's comfortable, but it's just not right. At least not for me.

          So yes, I just have to take a deep breath, take my diploma, and go. Instead of feeling bad about who/what I won't have, I need to just be grateful that I have had these things in my life. I know I will always look back with extreme fondness toward my college years. They have been the best yet, and probably always will be. 

          Anyways, in other - not so emotional - news, my medical review nurse called on Monday (finally!). She said that everything looks good EXCEPT I got the wrong Hepatitis B tests (?). So that day I was an awful student teacher. I left the high school, called doctors, and got the right ones done. I faxed the new results to DC last night, so I'm hoping for medical clearance by tomorrow or Monday.

          Here's the wild card: I leave for Italy for 10 days on Monday. So if a Placement Officer tries to call me... I won't know about it until May 19th! yikes! I will be taking my computer with me though, solely just to be sure that if I get an email, I can respond to that. I will have my resume saved and ready to go, so if they email asking for an updated resume, I can do that from Italy.

          After Italy (which is a concert tour of my college's Chorus, Chamber Singers, and String Ensemble- each of which I am a member of) I am home only for 10 days. Within THOSE ten days, I am performing in an opera in the city and I am getting my wisdom teeth out. Then on May 29th I leave on a mission trip for Costa Rica, where I will have NO contact with the Peace Corps. So this means that any contact with the peace corps needs to be between May 19th and 29th. Seems like such a tall order to expect! Clearly there is a reason why my bible verse for this week is "All things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to His purpose."