Last year, this time (6 months to go)

I've been invited for MOROCCO! Woo. Leaving March of 2012, matter of fact.

As I'm sitting in my brother's apartment during Parents' Weekend, I think fondly of this same event a year ago. One year ago, I was on campus listening to a lecture from a Foreign Service/diplomat kind of guy. He'd spent years living and traveling around the world as a representative of the U.S., learning a few parts of many different languages-- his wife was the one with the knack, so to speak. He answered questions about how one route that will definitely get you started in the right directions is joining the Peace Corps. As I listened to the way his life had manifested and developed over the years, I found myself daydreaming of the possibilities.

What could the Peace Corps mean for me?

And then I took that question and threw it out, because no matter where I go or how or when I travel, I will always learn something. I can always benefit from the experience of meeting new people, because that is just who I am. I travel, and I meet people. And my name is Sam. It all fits together...

What it really means for me is that, in all likelihood, I will be the only American the people within my village have ever met-- with the possible exception of previous Peace Corps Volunteers. It's terrifying and exciting and frightening and wonderful all at once. How strong of an influence will this experience have on me? Will I have on them?

Am I going to be just another American traveling through, or will I be able to establish healthy habits and practices and maybe learn how to cook using a Tagine? (http://www.katherinemartinelli.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/tagine.jpg)

I'm not really worried about my safety-- more for my sanity, at staying in one place for so long..

I don't know how I feel about the whole thing at the moment. I know that I would have felt much more comfortable in Jordan because I know the dialect a little and have friends in the area, but--to quote the masterful hokey pokey-- that's what it's all about!!

Onward to Morocco, 6 months countdown.

On a side note: I've stopped reading books and started reading Peace Corps blogs. Yay.