Par for the Course

Friday, December 15, 2006

I have a diagram that was put together by a group of volunteers who COS-ed (completed service) in Senegal in the mid-‘80s and is applicable for volunteers living in West Africa. It’s called “Critical Periods in the Life of a Peace Corps Volunteer.” The calendar charts the emotional roller coaster that a majority of volunteers experience and explains what can be expected during each phase of the 27-month service; soaring highs, painful lows, deep-rooted feelings of utter contentment and the painstaking panic of self-doubt. Since most of the volunteers who are a year ahead of me attest to its accuracy, I have taken it out at times to chart my progress. I am at the 3-6 month mark and am supposed to be experiencing the following:

ISSUES:
-Assignment
-Separation/solitude
-Uncertainty of role

BEHAVIORS/REACTIONS:
-Fright
-Frustration with self
-Loneliness
-Weight and/or health changes
-Homesickness
-Uselessness

INTERVENTIONS:
-Develop in-country correspondence
-Host visitors
-Visit peers, other PCV’s
-Establish links: NGO’s, services
-Technical research for future use
-Language study
-Establish routine, sense of “I”
-Hobbies to do “in public”
-Simple projects: garden, trees

It’s times like these, when I pull out this chart, that I feel mockingly predictable … down to the “simple projects” addition in which for some absurd reason I have suddenly become overly enthusiastic about plants. Yet though the conventional knowledge is sadly applicable (the first time I skimmed this chart, I determined my experience would be unique, original, different, blah blah, etc.), it is nonetheless comforting. Apparently it’s completely normal, even expected, for a usually grounded person to feel adrift the rocking tumultuous sea that is Peace Corps - especially when the only solid ground is a volcano.