Adventure, or No Adventure, That is the Question

In preparation for my entrance into Armenian life and exit from American life, I have been making plans to see family, getting rid of a lot of the clutter I own, and trying to set up as easy a transition as I can. As I was making my decision to leave, I spoke with my brother Peter, who works all over the world with the State Dept. of Foreign Service, and I asked him what made him leave the country and pursue a life abroad. I have always wanted to do this, but now that the opportunity is here, I look at my comfortable life here and think, Do I really wanna leave this... And as I think about that, I see that things change: People, places, friends, family, work, etc. They all change, whether I am in Armenia or here in Orlando, Fl. As I look at what relationships I have, questions about whether or not I should go, and if its the right decision, I stumbled upon this quote.

"Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore."

- Andre Gide.

To me it means that if I want the kind of life that makes other people jealous, if I want the type of experiences people wish they had, if I want to see things that can't be seen in a book, then going to Armenia isn't a hard decision. I feel sometimes its easy to sit in my comfortable bed or couch, turn on the TV with a bazillion channels, drive up to Taco Bell at 2am for a cheesy gordita crunch and think, no I am comfortable here, no need to leave. But where is the mystery involved in that, where is the adrenaline, the wonder, amazement, astonishment, where is the part of you inside that screams out I AM ALIVE. I think its gets lost. I think it sits dormant deep within, cause just like you, its too comfortable to come out and see whats past the shore line. Whats even more frightening is the massive number of people that don't even realize there is a shoreline to go past. So yes, I am going to Armenia, and yes, i will be creating a life that some can only read about or dream about. But it doesn't mean we all aren't capable of doing it... all you have to do is leave the beach, head into the horizon, and not stop till you find what your looking for...

It's Official!

It is official. I will be serving as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Armenia as a Community Health Extension. Its kind of hard to believe that after a year and 3 months of applying, calling, waiting, and more waiting, I have finally been invited to serve. I called this past thursday and accepted my posting. So as of right now I leave on May 31 for the adventure of a lifetime. Hopefully it fulfills what I expect.

I will say that part of me is hesitant, leaving home, friends, family, certain people and relationships for 27 months to a country most dont even know where it is on a map. The language barrier wont be easy, but i guess that is why they say the PC is the "toughest job you will ever love." I do feel kind of lucky though, i read that in 2008 11,000 applied to the PC, and they only accepted 4,000. So given the recent "economic downturn," I am sure that application number jumped higher in the year I applied. Hopefully I can overcome the trials and challenges that each volunteer faces, I am sure I will be just fine though, Guess i will find out soon enough. My only problem now is figuring out how and when to quit my current job. I will keep you informed as what my next steps are as I get them. As of right now I know I have to get an H1N1 vaccination, submit forms for a special issued passport, and send my resume and an apsiration statement to my country of service. The work has already started...