it's allll happpeeeennniiinnngggg

Today is the day I finally thought about and comprehended how long 27 months is. Many people have questioned my reasoning for doing Peace Corps. Why would I want to leave everyone I love, everything I love, and put my life on hold for 2 years? But, am I really putting my life on hold?? For me, it is quite the opposite. I will have so many learning experiences, meet people-- many of whom I will learn to love, and find new interests and hobbies that I might otherwise never have discovered. (Like riding a horse or brick laying?? haaha). Overall, what is two years of my life? Just a small portion that I am willing to "put on hold" for what I will receive in exchange. Obviously, I will miss out on many things-- important things-- back here in the States, but I'll be able to have all that upon returning. Feeling 'out of the loop' will by far be the hardest thing for me, but as long as my family and friends keep me posted with stories and pictures, I think I can live with that!! PLEASE KEEP ME POSTED :)

When will I ever be able to live independently in a foreign culture for 2 years learning and helping people along the way? My bet is that it will never happen again and many people never get this opportunity. I embrace this challenge.

In other news, I leave for SPAIN tomorrow night! Good opportunity to practice my Spanish because lord knows, I need it!!! I'm also very very super excited to spend 10 days with my mom and sisters. Can't wait!

Also- my flight for Miami leaves Philly on Feb 8th at 12:15PM. My flight for Paraguay leaves Miami at 8:15PM on Feb 9th. It's all happeeeeennnniiinnnngggg! WOOOOO.

taking each day as it comes

So, Christmas is already here. Time has absolutely flown by. In the last month, I have celebrated as much as possible at Penn State, said goodbye to LifeLink which included a trillion hugs and tears, had a graduation "dan you's a sexy snitch bar" tour, GRADUATED, and moved home (only to find that my parents got me a REAL christmas tree and put more lights up outside just for me)! Bye, bye glank... hello Jamison. My 3.5 years at PSU have been the best of my life and I have my roommates to thank for that. My psu people have been such a motivation for me to do peace corps. If I'm having a rough time in Paraguay, I'll always be able to laugh at our memories, including the day we realized that we didn't qualify to get our "ya ya's" out. As we say, it's my time to finally be a "real person" and I know that Peace Corps is the perfect opportunity to do so. My life feels like kind of a whirlwind, but I'm trying to take each day at a time. I've thought about not doing certain things because it will make it harder for me to leave, but in the end... why should I hold back during my last couple months at home? So yes, I will indulge in the greasy american food, watch silly reality TV shows, and let people into my life. My heart is 100% fully indulged in this experience and I know that with a lot of hard work (accompanied by some tears and complaints, of course), I will be able to be very successful during my service. It's exactly what I want to do and now it's my time to test myself and see if I'm as strong/capable as I think I am. I'm confident that I am a good match for PC... so this better work out!!!! The challenges will be far outweighed by the rewarding eye-openers that are sure to change my perspective on life.

Anyway, I leave from Miami on Feb 8th and fly out to Paraguay shortly after. I wanted to make a couple of posts before leaving to make sure people knew how to access this blog and so that I could learn the ropes of it. These few months before leaving are also part of the whole journey and should be included as part of the whole experience. Keep following along, as I will try to update it as much as possible while abroad. Thanks for all the support!! It makes me more and more confident that I have made the right decision :) :)

Invitation Packet

My invitation packet came in the mail on Saturday, Nov.21, right before we were leaving to see the Transiberian Orchestra! I was so excited to find out that my assignment is for PARAGUAY! My program is called Rural Health and Sanitation and I'll be leaving for staging on February 2, 2010. I'll be speaking Spanish anddd Guarani which I am really excited about! Some of my main duties will be to focus on dental health education, parasite prevention, nutrition, improving cooking methods, STIs and HIV/AIDS prevention education, improving waste disposal methods, and cleaning/protecting water sources. I just sent out my visa and passport applications and completed my updates resume. I just have to work on my aspiration statement, as well as financial and insurance matters. It'll take a lot of work and preparation to get ready for this, but I can't wait!!!! :)