Thank you so, so much to everyone who donated to the
Education for Liberation library project. Our fundraising efforts exceeded my
wildest hopes and dreams. Because of your donations, the students of Endagaw
will be able to study out of textbooks for the first time ever. It’s magical.
I guess I’ve been avoiding writing this month’s blog entry
because I’m not ready to start talking about the end. There’s no denying it,
I’ve hit the two years mark and I booked a one-way plane ticket to Dakar, the
first stop on my upcoming West African adventure. On July 28th, I am
leaving Tanzania for the foreseeable future. My last month as a Peace Corps
Volunteer starts now.
How do I begin to describe what this feels like? I’m
spinning in emotional circles. Sometimes I look back over the past two years
and wonder what superhero has been living my life. More often, I feel like a
fraud in a gaudy cape. I spend hours just thinking about all the things I could
have done differently, better, more sustainably. Sometimes I look at villagers
whose names I don’t even know and see best friends I could have made if I just
gave them a chance. I look at problems in the village with experienced eyes and simple solutions suddenly come to me-- projects that will never be.
I know it’s pointless to think that way. Of course I have
regrets, but I’ll learn from them, and my life will be better for it. I’ve
already seen that happen in this most recently library project. I really feel
like I’m doing it right this time. It’s a good feeling.
My computer battery’s dying so I can’t write more, but I
just wanted to drop a note so everyone knows I’m alive and busily putting your
donations to work.
