To What I Aspire…

Since accepting my invitation to Malawi, much has happened!

Monday I completed all my passport stuff and got it to UPS. It was a busy busy day! Then Tuesday and Wednesday I attended a training class called HIV Counseling, Testing and Referrals. In the class we learned skills to counsel people getting HIV tests. Even though it was geared towards HIV testing, I feel like the skills I learned will help out in all walks of my life. It was well worth the 9-5 days in a tiny room, lol.

Just now I finished and emailed off my final resume and aspiration statement. It was much more difficult than I anticipated because you’re so excited, like a ball of energy and your mind is reeling constantly with your thoughts of service, but to sit down and put it all into words was like, “Uh….” But I finished finally and sent it away.

I have started actually recieving items off my wish list, which is awesome!

The more I learn about Malawi, the more excited I get! My prayers were answered when I said my biggest fear was heat, in Malawi 95 is high! yessssss! I can handle 95! I read the whole welcome book in one-sitting and found myself smiling through the whole thing. Am I a dork or what? haha.
I have made a Facebook group for those of us leaving to Malawi at the same time (7 members! but 3 are current volunteers lol).
I have started to attempt learning Chichewa, the other official language of Malawi. It’s very difficult! I downloaded all the audio bits from my Toolkit, which really helps. It helps hearing how you actually say “Ndaswela bwino kaya inu?” which is “I spent the day well, what about you?” lol yeah… Luckily though, I found an iPhone app!! Yes I know, I was shocked too. My mom jokingly said, “Too bad there isn’t an app, at least I have one to learn Spanish.” So I thought I’d at least look, and sho-nuff! So hopefully I will not be completely lost when I step off the plane in Lilongwe! *fingers crossed*

And, for those who care, here is my Aspiration Statement:

The professional attributes that you plan to use, and what aspirations you hope to fulfill, during your Peace Corps service: For my Peace Corps service I will use my strong work ethics and understanding of the value of diligence and perseverance in order to achieve goals and aspirations. I have a lot of experience with non-profit organizations and agencies and working with a wide variety of individuals of different backgrounds. I have a lot of experience in the field of HIV education and prevention. I have completed a training course with the Oklahoma State Department of Health for HIV Counseling, Testing and Referrals, during which I gained invaluable skills and information on how to counsel people when working with sensitive information. Having a degree in Social Work I will be bringing a varied perspective on how to approach my assignment and community-based interventions and how to better implement them. For the last year and a half of my three years that I worked at a major bookstore, I was promoted to a section supervisor. As a part of my job as section supervisor I was in a leadership position, I had to be self-motivated to make executive decisions without always seeking higher approval, I used effective communication skills to work with and train employees below me, and was trusted to get my job done efficiently and effectively. I am good at creative problem solving and offering a fresh outlook to old dilemmas.
My aspirations for my service in Malawi are many. I am trying to keep a realistic attitude, but my heart is aflutter with dreams of Malawi. I expect to experience a journey unlike anything I can imagine. I expect to witness and experience poverty, despair, hunger, death and pain. However, I also hope to be shocked and enlightened; exposed to a whole new side of me I’ve yet to discover; and experience happiness, love, friendship and community on a whole new level than that of what I am used to. I hope to touch the people of Malawi in some way whether it be minute or immense and I hope to develop trust and friendship with a community that I will carry with me forever.

Your strategies for working effectively with host country partners to meet expressed needs: To work effectively in my community, I will try to keep a positive and patient attitude. I believe myself to be very personable and will use this to develop relationships with my community in order to establish trust and meet expressed needs. I will use the skills I acquired in my HIV Counseling class to better communicate with members of the community and get to the heart of any barriers. I will keep an open mind and open heart. I will try to be understanding of cultural differences and adhere to their customs in order to integrate into the community better and be able to be taken seriously and work effectively. And always, try to smile.

Your strategies for adapting to a new culture with respect to your own cultural background: I certainly do not have the most extensive cultural background; however, I was raised  to have a very open mind. I went to a high school that was majority African Americans, and am familiar with cultural differences and barriers and how to adapt. I have always had an alternative personality and often have had to learn to tailor my expression of such in order to obtain and hold jobs, as well as excel in my education. My own family has taught me the importance of family and is a very loud, loving and in-your-business kind of family. I will use this experience to help adapt to the close-knit families and communities I expect to encounter in Malawi. I am excited about this adventure. I am excited to learn about the people of Malawi and their customs and am moving forward with a “gun-ho” attitude about integrating into my community and trying new things.

The skills and knowledge you hope to gain during pre-service training to best serve your future community and project: I am excited and nervous all at once regarding pre-service training. I know it will be tough and tiring, but I know it will prepare me to be a valuable member of my community and will teach me the skills I need to fulfill my assignment. I expect to learn basic medical knowledge and skills in preventative care. I expect to be thrown head-long into more than one crazy language I hope to be fluent in. I expect to learn the knowledge and skills to achieve the duties of my assignment to the best of my ability. I expect to be taught methods to cope with loneliness and culture shock. I expect to learn all the customs and cultural differences of Malawi in order to better integrate myself and understand the people I will be living with. Without that understanding, how could I presume to make any difference? In the end, I hope I will be ready.

How you think Peace Corps service will influence your personal and professional aspirations after your service ends: I think my service with Peace Corps will influence my life in ways I can only imagine right now. At this moment in time, I hope to come home and pursue a Master’s degree in Social Work, but who knows if when I come home I will be more passionate about Public Health? I am keeping an open mind regarding how it will affect me and am excited about the journey, not the end result. I am sure I will be changed immensely and I know it will influence my personal and professional life at the end of my service, but now it is not time to be too concerned with then. How ever my service affects me at my return to the states, I will deal with then. My only hope for the future is that my life will be more enriched and enlightened from my experience and that I will find a way to use that in my career.