Boston, WV and VA

So, I've planned a few trips before I leave... The first big trip was to visit my great friend, Carinne in Boston. She is getting married in November and I wanted to spend some time with her before I leave. We had a great time, catching up and talking. I'll miss her so much. She has promised to visit me in Morocco...

Then, Jesse and I made the trip to move what few things I still have to my parents house in the country lands of West Virginia. My sister and my Grandma also live nearby in Winchester, VA, about 20 minutes from there, so we headed South and stayed there for 5 days. There was much Frisbee Golf. There was Skirt and Dress making (did I mention that virtually none of my clothes seem acceptably modest by Moroccan standards?). There was much playing with Baby Audriana. And there was an very nice visit to Luray Caverns. I was renewed by the beauty of this area. Jesse had never been in the mountains or a cavern, so his amazement made me love it even more!

The decision to Join

It's been an interesting and blessed road into the Peace Corps...

I've always been interested in helping people on a grassroots level and so the Peace Corps seemed like it might be a viable and likely path to take, so I looked into it...

That's when I discovered that the qualifications to become aVolunteer are quite involved. I was starting to think I wasn't qualified. I decided to apply and hopefully my experience would prove its value. After the long application (it tooks me two months to complete), I received a response that I would probably be best qualified for Agriculture or English teaching. Well, I really didn't want to teach English and I was giving the whole idea serious doubt with the idea of agriculture work for over 2 years... In this struggle, I was preparing myself for the interview, gearing up to try to explain that I was qualified to do Non-Governmental Organization Development (They had already told me that I really wasn't quite qualified for this). By this time I was really questioning the whole idea - feeling like the Peace Corps actually wasn't the right path for me. It shouldn't be such a stretch.... Then, right before my interview, I get a phone call - a program had opened up (it only comes around once a year or every two) - Small Business Development for Textiles Artists in Morocco! Well, well... if that wasn't the perfect match!!! I couldn't believe how well it turned around. The start time was a month earlier than I had wanted to leave, but it would work.

After accepting this program came clearances... I got the medical with several trips and phone calls to the doctors. The legal was quick - no record there, but dental was another story....

I went to a local dentist in the area, thinking I might have a cavity or two... only to find out I had 12! Some were large and he quoted me $4,000! I was convinced he was trying to rip me off, so I wanted a second opinion... Just to be safe, I scheduled an appointment with Penn School of Dentistry (they would cost a lot less if I really did have to have all that work done). Getting in there took 3 months. Once I was seen, I didn't even get an exam on the first visit, only x-rays. They said they would call me back in a couple of weeks. I was sensing this would be a loooonggg process, so I was getting nervous about the work getting done in time. THEN... another amazing thing happened - a dental graduate called me. She had seen my x-rays and needed a patient to fill a cavity on for her Board Exam. She said if I would be one her patients (one day exam) that she would fill my other cavities for FREE! At this point, she thought I had only 3 (they showed up via x-ray), but when she examined me she said 12-13. sigh... She still was going to try to do them all (at minimal cost if any) and get it done in time for me to get my dental clearance. Her time ran out with the school and she took me into her residency! In the end, I had $4,000 of dental work done for $60! It was a long and painful process at times, but hey - I just can't complain!

So, as things continue to fall into place, I am moving out of my house tomorrow... Jesse and I will visit my family in WV/VA for 5 days and then make a trip to CO for 5 days to visit my other sister. After that, we are going camping in Canada for a week or so before my "staging" starts in Philadelphia.

I will be at this "staging" orientation there for two days before getting on a plane to Casablanca on Sept 10. From there, we spend 4 days in Rabat and then a week at the Training site before moving in with a host family for the remainder of the 3 month training. After training, I move to my permanent site (either solely or with another volunteer) for an additional 2 years!



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Love to you all~