The Beginning of the End

So the time has finally come. I am about to complete my two years of service in the Peace Corps. Even though I know my mom would beg to differ, the time has truly flown past for me. I find it almost unbelievable that I am now 24 years old; it feels like yesterday that I graduated from college and got on that plane.

Many people have and will be asking me “So how was Peace Corps?”, and right now I’m finding that question difficult to answer. I think I need more space and more time between me and Pohnpei for me to judge the situation clearly. These past two years have been the most challenging experience of my life, both physically and emotionally. I feel I am much stronger because of it, but I’m not sure yet what else I have gained from my time here in service.

I faced so many obstacles along the way, countless frustrations, and endless illness. I had a good local friend die, a family member and a friend back home as well. I experienced many failures and mistakes, and often felt isolated and alone. I think I will need more time to process everything before I can call this “the toughest job you’ll ever love” (Peace Corps’ favorite catch phrase).

But even so, a part of me is sad to leave. Despite all the hardships, I do care deeply about many of the people I’ve met here. My family has been an endless source of help and support, and I will truly miss them. Several of my students and co-teachers impacted me in ways they will never know. And not to mention the American friends I’ve made that supported me through it all, both Peace Corps Volunteers and Jesuit Volunteers. Those young men and women are incredible and I am proud to call them my friends. So getting on that plane next week will definitely be bittersweet.

Already I feel like I’m living in a surreal reality. My room is becoming more and more empty, as I begin packing, throwing away things, and donating others. I just had the goodbye party at my school yesterday, and my family and I are planning something special for this weekend, my last weekend. So many lasts. I’m trying frantically to get everything in that I want to do before I leave, acknowledging that some of my bucket list will just never get done.

So as Friday draws near, I’m trying my best to soak up all that I can. Even with all the frustrations that came with my service, I will never again have this unique experience and that in it itself is worth appreciating.

Thank you to everyone who helped and supported me along the way. I honestly couldn’t have done it without you.

I’ll see you all on the other side!

Stay well,

--Christy

An Open Letter to Family and Friends in America

Dear Friends,

In just over a week I will begin my 37 hour journey home, and I am very excited to see you again and catch up on the past two years. But before I do, I’d like to let you all in on a little secret: I am terrified to go back to America.

In America there are lots of people, big buildings, fast cars, and giant shopping malls. All of these things and many more, cause me a lot of anxiety when I think about returning home. Please be patient with me when I get overwhelmed. Please don’t laugh at me when I begin to hyperventilate in the middle of a Target or while gaping at the produce selection in Publix. Please just hold my hand and remind me to breathe.

Please acknowledge that I have become accustomed to a certain way of life and culture very different from our own. Please tell me when I do something socially unacceptable. Notice I said “when” and not “if”, because let’s face it, this will absolutely happen. Please alert me to my poor fashion choices.

Please remember that I have been living very far away in a remote location. Please humor me when I fail to understand a pop-culture reference or when I am clueless about current events. Be prepared to catch me up on two years’ worth of life.

Please recognize that I lived for two years in a tropical environment without air-conditioning. Please accept the fact that I will find 80 degrees freezing. Please don’t just me when I curl up in a blanket in the middle of August.

Please understand that I’ve lived in a virtually technology-less realm. Please allow me to be utterly mesmerized by your cell phone, computer, tablet, tv, car, or whatever. Please do not trust me not to break your aforementioned items. I have no idea how to use them. Please teach me how.

Now that you know what amount of crazy expect (high levels), I look forward to seeing you all soon!

--Christy

105 Books I Read in Peace Corps

105 Books I Read in Peace Corps

A while back my Peace Corps post received an adorable letter from an elementary student in Massachusetts asking the Volunteers various questions, among which laid this gem: “Do you ever have time to read?” When this was read aloud to the room, everyone chuckled. Do I have time to read? Son, that is just about all that I do. You’d be surprised how much you can read in a world without tv or internet.

So, for your viewing pleasure, I’ve compiled a list of the books I read during my service. Several of the titles are books I have read before, but simply re-read while here. Others are books I was assigned to read in school but never did. Many of the books are ones I’ve always wanted to read by never had the time. Some are titles I’d never heard of, but picked up on a whim. The genres are varied, but many authors repeat. I even read three complete series, though only two consecutively.

I took a little liberty with including the last title, as I am currently reading it, but anticipate its completion prior to my departure next week. Also, if you’re feeling lazy, I’ve whittled the list down to my favorite 10 titles, and that shorter list can be found first.

After you’ve perused the lists, feel free to ask me to review any of the books. Lord knows I’m full of opinions. Enjoy!

Top 10 List (in no particular order):

1. The Kite Runner (Khaled Hosseini)
2. A Prayer for Owen Meany (John Irving)
3. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (Ken Kesey)
4. The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland on a Ship of Her Own Making (Catherynne M. Valente)
5. The Time Travelor’s Wife (Audrey Niffenegger)
6. Columbine (Dave Cullen)
7. The Bean Trees (Barbara Kingsolver)
8. The Shack (William P. Young)
9. The Scarlet Pimpernel (Baroness Orczy)
10. Island of the Colorblind (Oliver Sacks)

Complete Book List (June 2012- July 2014)

1. The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (Robert Luis Stevenson)
2. The Poisonwood Bible (Barbara Kingsolver)
3. Bossypants (Tina Fey)
4. Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children (Ransom Riggs)
5. Jurassic Park (Michael Crichton)
6. The Time Machine (H.G. Wells)
7. Cocktail Hour Under the Tree of Forgetfulness (Alexandra Fuller)
8. The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making (Catherynne M. Valente)
9. The Lover’s Dictionary (David Levithan)
10. A Long Way Down (Nick Hornby)
11. Devil In the White City (Erik Larson)
12. My Horizontal Life: A Collect of One-Night Stands (Chelsea Handler)
13. Lost in Shangri-La: A True Story of Survival, Adventure, and the Most Incredible Rescue Mission of WWII (Mitchell Zuckoff)
14. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (Ken Kesey)
15. Heaven’s For Real (Todd Burpo)
16. Bridge to Terrabithia (Katherine Patterson)
17. To Kill A Mockingbird (Harper Lee)
18. The Art of Racing in the Rain (Garth Stein)
19. Drown (Junot Diaz)
20. Outliers (Malcom Gladwell)
21. Hoot (Carl Hiaasen)
22. The Good Earth (Pearl S. Buck)
23. 32 Third Graders and One Class Bunny: Life Lessons from Teaching (Phillip Done)
24. Next (Michael Critchon)
25. To Sir, With Love (E.R. Braithwaite)
26. The Reader (Bernard Schlink)
27. The Time Traveler’s Wife (Audrey Niffenegger)
28. Holes (Louis Sachar)
29. The Thirteenth Tale (Diane Setterfield)
30. Silver Linings Playbook (Matthew Quick)
31. Life of Pi (Yann Martel)
32. A Wrinkle in Time (Madeline L’Engle)
33. My Korean Deli: Risking It All For a Convenience Store (Ben Ryder Howe)
34. Annie Freeman’s Fabulous Traveling Funeral (Kris Radish)
35. The Island of the Colorblind (Oliver Sacks)
36. The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency (Alexander McCall Smith)
37. Wrong About Japan (Peter Carey)
38. The Sex Lives of Cannibals (J. Maarten Troost)
39. The Runaway Jury (John Grisham)
40. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (J.K. Rowling)
41. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (J.K. Rowling)
42. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (J.K. Rowling)
43. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (J.K. Rowling)
44. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (J.K. Rowling)
45. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (J.K. Rowling)
46. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (J.K. Rowling)
47. The Devil Wears Prada (Lauren Weiberger)
48. Tears of the Giraffe (Alexander McCall Smith)
49. Columbine (Dave Cullen)
50. The Unheard: A Memoir of Deafness and Africa (Josh Swiller)
51. Ape House (Sara Gruen)
52. The Bean Trees (Barbara Kingsolver)
53. Theodore Boone: The Abduction (John Grisham)
54. We the Animals (Justin Torres)
55. 11/22/63 (Stephen King)
56. The Psychopath Test: A Journey Through the Madness Industry (Jon Ronson)
57. The Lightning Thief (Rick Riordan)
58. The Sea of Monsters (Rick Riordan)
59. The Titan’s Curse (Rick Riordan)
60. The Battle of the Labyrinth (Rick Riordan)
61. The Last Olympian (Rick Riordan)
62. Surviving Paradise (Peter Rudiak-Gould)
63. A is for Alibi (Sue Grafton)
64. The Freedom Writers’ Diary (Erin Gruwell and the Freedom Writers)
65. Ender’s Game (Orson Scott Card)
66. Pigs in Heaven (Barbara Kingsolver)
67. Along Came a Spider (James Patterson)
68. Good in Bed (Jennifer Weiner)
69. A Prayer for Owen Meany (John Irving)
70. The Shack (William P. Young)
71. Orange is the New Black (Piper Kerman)
72. Kiss the Girls (James Patterson)
73. Wild (Cheryl Srayed)
74. The Scarlet Pimpernel (Baroness Orczy)
75. The Girl Who Fell Beneath Fairyland and Led the Revels There (Cathrynne M. Valente)
76. David and Goliath (Malcolm Gladwell)
77. Ferenheit 451 (Ray Bradbury)
78. Into Thin Air (Jon Karakauer)
79. The Secret Garden (Franes Hodgson Burnett)
80. Forrest Gump (Winston Groom)
81. Romeo and Juliet (William Shakespeare)
82. A Star Called Henry (Roddy Doyle)
83. Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? And Other Concerns (Mindy Kaling)
84. The Handmaid’s Tale (Margaret Atwood)
85. A Walk in the Woods (Bill Bryson)
86. Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore (Robin Sloan)
87. The Night Circus (Erin Morgenstern)
88. The Kite Runner (Khaled Hosseini)
89. Little Bee (Chris Cleave)
90. Island of the Sequined Love Nun (Christopher Moore)
91. Angela’s Ashes (Frank McCourt)
92. 1984 (George Orwell)
93. 12 Years a Slave (Solomon Northup)
94. The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy (Douglas Adams)
95. The Zookeeper’s Wife (Diane Ackerman)
96. Teacher Man (Frank McCourt)
97. The Girl Who Soared Over Fairyland and Cut the Moon in Two (Catherynne M. Valente)
98. The Winner Stands Alone (Paulo Coelho)
99. A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier (Ishmael Beah)
100. Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim (David Sedaris)
101. I Am the Messenger (Markus Zusak)
102. Sun Flower and the Secret Fan (Lisa See)
103. The Book Thief (Markus Zusak)
104. Ship Breaker (Paola Bacigalupi)
105. Love Medicine (Louise Erdrich)

So many of the books above were wonderful to read; my top 10 list was a very difficult decision. And as excited as I am to go home, I realize I will no longer have enough time to read as much as I’ve become accustomed. But regardless, I see a library card in my future.

Happy reading!

--Christy