Flirting with the Peace Corps

Yesterday, my placement officer called me for a final evaluation. She said I'd find out if I got an invitation within 10 business days. That was yesterday. Today I got that breath-catching "Application Status Update" email, and I opened it as quickly as my 14.4k modem connection would allow. (About 15 minutes. Sad.) Big blue letters sprawled across the top of the page: "Congratulations! You have been invited to become a Peace Corps Volunteer." YEAH!

I'm not in the clear yet, however. Along with my Invitee packet comes MORE PAPERWORK. (I wonder how many hectares of rainforest fall to the Peace Corps Application Process each year? Interesting paradox.) While I hate doing the paperwork, I think this round should be less taxing than previous bouts. It is also the last hurtle to clear before I am approved for Orientation.

I have to apply for a State Department Passport, which is actually pretty sweet. It will expire 3 months after my service is done, but I wonder what doors will be opened (or closed?) to me in those 3 months. Hm.

I may or may not have to submit more medical/dental work. I severely hope not... I have several thousand dollars in my mouth and body that the Peace Corps required, even when my medical and dental professions told me that they didn't think it was really necessary. Hoops. Bloody, toothy hoops.

I have to submit another letter of intent. I guess this makes sense, but maybe they should realize that if I've stuck with this bloody application thus far, then I must be pretty damn committed. It hasn't been a frolic in the park with skittles and champaign.

They also found it necessary to instruct me to tell my family and friends that I am going. Umm... Actually, now that I think about it, this may have merit. I haven't told my parents about my invitation yet. (Then again, when I told them I was accepted to grad school, I quickly learned what a mistake that was.) Perhaps I'll wait until I have my plane tickets in my hand to let them know. That way there's no grey area in which they can pounce and complicate matters. They don't seem to realize that I'm 24, not 12. I don't claim sage wisdom, but I'm not a complete dolt either. Apparently that's a "parent thing."

I still don't know exactly WHERE I'm going. They seem to want to keep this a secret for as long as possible. My placement officer wouldn't tell me over the phone, nor is it on the website. This information will be included with the Invitee packet I'm due to receive within the next 2 weeks.

But I want to know NOW! ... Breath in, breath out. Patience.

Choices, choices

After months and months of waiting for the Peace Corps, un-returned calls and general radio-silence, I decided to just go ahead and get on with my life. I had already been keeping an eye out for possible grad school programs for months. I had been considering the Masters International program, which would combine both Peace Corps and grad school. Unfortunately, I did the steps backwards, and applied/was accepted by the PC before I even applied to grand school. Therefore I would have to do the entire application process over again. Uuuuuuuugh! (I will not even go into the ridiculous hoops I had to jump through to be accepted by standard PC.)

I was, however, accepted by my #1 grad school, for the Masters International MPA program. I have not accepted yet, as I was waiting to discuss my options with the Peace Corps.

Well, they finally called me today, and I got some questions answered. According to my placement officer, I have been cleared for final placement. This means, I am told, that I should receive my invitation within the next 2 weeks. I would likely leave in early February. OR, I could opt for the MPA PCMI (wow that's long), begin classes in Fall 2010, and put off my PC service until 2012.

I have been waiting for this for a long time. The chance to get out and see the world, test myself, fail, regroup, and try again, each fall making me stronger. True, California would surely be a change of scene, but not enough of one. I think that I am going to accept the Peace Corps offer as it stands now, and put off grad school until I return in 2012. From that point I can apply to the PC Fellows program and complete my Masters degree with a lot more international experience, and hopefully a more concrete sense of direction.

Here's what I know about the program my placement officer hinted at:

1. Although she wouldn't tell me the country, I expect it is in the South American Andes. She said I "might not use my Spanish skills much, but rather learn the local indigenous language." This implies a rural community inside a Spanish-speaking majority. Ecuador, Peru and to some extent Paraguay, fit this profile most readily.

2. I will not only be teaching English, but also health, communications, math, social science and "life skills," whatever that means.

3. I will be teaching early elementary school, most likely kindergarden through second grade. Oooooh boy.

4. OOOR they might send me to Eastern Europe/Central Asia for a standard ESL program. She did not elaborate on this option.

I will certainly be on edge for the next two weeks. Every large envelope will make my heart jump into my throat. I suspect my average breaths-per-day rating will be much lower than normal, for my tendency to hold my breath when excited or anxious. (Especially on the phone, for some reason... this makes me sound like I am standing up to my neck in uncomfortably frigid icy water with no shoes or means of escape.

Relax. Breath in, breath out. All there is to do is wait.