As I sit in the Accra airport, there is quite a lot going on in my head. Besides a aching head from a cold I picked up when consolidated with 190 volunteers, there has been little time left to contemplate everything until now. And as I sit here, about to jet set to the United States, it makes me realize how much my life has changed in the past 9 days. A mere week and a half ago, I was in Koutiala, Mali getting ready to return back to my site to continue on my 27 month journey in Mali. Now, I am visiting the U.S for a very short time before heading back out into the Peace Corps world. Only this time, instead of the dry saharan arid land of Mali, it will be the island nation of Vanuatu, filled with a color I haven't seen in plenty for a while—green.
I wish I could say I was as excited as my family is to visit me now. It's just at this point, even as I am in another African country, I miss Mali. I miss the kindness I have never seen in another culture as I have in Namposella. I miss the ease of conversation—that whenever things turned quiet, you could always make fun of a last name and revive the chat. As great as Ghana was, it was the first time it made me truly appreciate the language barrier that existed in Mali. Being able to converse with a Ghanian was rewarding, but being able to converse with a Malian in Bambara? There is no greater lingual reward. I will miss the conversation, I will miss the jokes, I will miss the people, I will miss Mali. In six short months, it has taught me a kindness and generosity that runs deep beyond the amount of money or food you have to share.
To Mali—may peace return quickly and to the next chapter—Vanuatu, please continue your political stability.
I wish I could say I was as excited as my family is to visit me now. It's just at this point, even as I am in another African country, I miss Mali. I miss the kindness I have never seen in another culture as I have in Namposella. I miss the ease of conversation—that whenever things turned quiet, you could always make fun of a last name and revive the chat. As great as Ghana was, it was the first time it made me truly appreciate the language barrier that existed in Mali. Being able to converse with a Ghanian was rewarding, but being able to converse with a Malian in Bambara? There is no greater lingual reward. I will miss the conversation, I will miss the jokes, I will miss the people, I will miss Mali. In six short months, it has taught me a kindness and generosity that runs deep beyond the amount of money or food you have to share.
To Mali—may peace return quickly and to the next chapter—Vanuatu, please continue your political stability.
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