You Can't Go Home Again

They say that you can’t go home again, but let me tell you that you can, actually go home again, and when you do, it will be AMAZING!  Not all PCVs have the opportunity to go home during their 27 month service, perhaps due to the expense or maybe out of fear of not returning to their host country.  I was fortunate to save enough money prior to Peace Corps to pay for my flight home and to have some spending money while I was home.  While a little part of me knew that coming back to Ethiopia after a month at home would be rough, I was willing to take the gamble that my need for some of the comforts of home would outweigh the difficulty of leaving home for the second time.

In the days leading up to my trip back to America I worried that maybe I wouldn’t fit into my life there anymore.  I worried that maybe I had changed in ways yet unknown to me and that maybe these changes wouldn’t be accepted by people at home.  I worried that maybe the familiar things of home had changed, and that maybe I wouldn’t be able to accept those changes.  I worried that maybe after dreaming of everyone and everything that I had missed so much over the past year; I had build up unrealistic expectations that couldn’t possibly be met.   I actually lost sleep worrying over these issues that now seem so silly because I didn’t experience any of them while I was home.

I think that my “vacation” at home came at the perfect time in my Peace Corps experience.  I’ve now made it past the half-way point, and I have just about a year left in Ethiopia.  Hopefully that means that the hardest part is behind me.  I am invested enough in my work here to know that I would return after my trip home to finish what I have started.  I also think that going home helped to give me a fresh perspective over my past year.  It helped me to focus on what I have learned and gained from this experience, and what I hope to accomplish in my remaining year.

So what has changed for me in the last year?  Well, I’m so glad you asked.  Here are a few of my lessons learned from life in Ethiopia….

• ·         I now have great balance and can squat for unnatural amounts of time.  No more falling over in the shint bet while trying to pee!

• ·         Every culture thinks that they are unique, but really it’s all the same when you boil it down.  We’re all human beings, and we all need love.  That’s what it’s all about.

• ·         Every culture thinks that their culture is the best, but really we all know that AMERICA is the best!  (joking, sort of…)

• ·         Slow down!  Go with the flow! This is the biggest lesson for me, and one that I’m still working on.

• ·         Be open to trying new things and having new experiences.  Every time you are pushed out of your comfort zone is a chance to grow.

Here are a few observations of life in the U.S. after being in Ethiopia for a year….

• ·         Whoa, air conditioning is cold!

• ·         Dogs in America are huge!  And I’m not afraid that they’re going to give me rabies!

• ·         Reality TV is especially awful, but I can’t stop watching.  There’s something about those Kardashians that I can’t help but love.

• ·         We Americans are a wasteful people.  So much food going in the trash, water left running, and overuse.  I hope to live more consciously and respectfully when I return home.

• ·         Driving is so orderly.  You think you’ve seen bad driving in the U.S.? You ain’t seen nothin’!

• ·         My once a week showering habit is not acceptable behavior in the U.S.

• ·         All my family and friends at home, I knew I loved you before but now I really know I love you! Absence has made my heart grow fonder for sure!

I am so grateful to all my friends and family who made time for me while I was home.  It was so great to see everyone and catch up.  I really loved every minute of being at home thanks to all of you!  I know that there were people I missed too.  Unfortunately, I am just so popular that a month was not enough time to see everyone!  Saying goodbye again for another year was not easy.  I left the U.S. for the second time, the same way I left the first time- crying on the plane.  Adjusting to life back in Ethiopia has been a challenge.  I find that I’ve lost a bit of my patience, and I’m working to get it back.  I know that my time here in Ethiopia will be worth it, and hopefully the rewards will overshadow the struggles.  

Keep those emails, cards and letters, Skype calls and if you really love me- packages coming because I certainly couldn’t do this without the support of my amazing family and friends!