Tuesday, November 3, 2009

DC Trip

As some of you may have heard, I have messed up my knee again. About a month ago, I convinced Gary, my sitemate, to go with me to the health walk. The health walk is a paved path through the mountains outside of the city. One of the other volunteers once attempted to count the stairs on the health walk but stopped after 3000. Needless to say, you go up stairs and then you come down stairs. Poor Gary. I convinced him to go up a full 5 kilometers before turning around. With 3 kilometers left to go on our decent, I hurt my knee jumping from a height of about 1.5 ft. I was unable to walk.

For the remaining 3 kilometers, I hopped up the up parts, slid down the railing on the down parts, and Gary carried me (imagine any Vietnam war movie you have seen where one loyal soldier carries his wounded companion to safety-minus the mud, Vietnam, the war, and any sort of enemy) on the flat parts. It took two hours to get to the bottom.

Side note: That morning I had promised my host family a Mexican burrito night. Upon my return home, I was distracted by the awesomeness of flavored ground beef and CHEESE! It was fabulous.

The next morning, I reported my injury to Peace Corps. After an x-ray and a CAT scan, the doctors concluded that I had managed to jolt one of the screws in my knee (put there during ACL surgery two years ago) out of the bone.

After two weeks of bed rest—which if you know me at all, drove me crazier than I already am J--I returned to the institute. Despite all the mental pressure I put on it, my knee refused to improve.

As a result, Peace Corps is sending me to Washington DC for medical treatment. It is so strange for me to be leaving! It is so strange to be headed back to the US! In my preparations, I have done a lot of reflecting. This is what I reflected J:

I would like to thank you very much for supporting me in my first year of Peace Corps service. As I have cleaned out my room in preparation for my medical evacuation, I have come across a lot of wonderful memories. I feel, more than ever, that my past year has been a full one, full of challenges, successes, mistakes, failures, personal growth, and change all around. Although I don’t have the hindsight to fully grasp how significant this year has been, I can already tell you that it has been the most formative year of my life.

This reflection has also convinced me, beyond a doubt that this is not goodbye. I do not wish to take this opportunity to bow out gracefully. To put it simply, I am not finished here. Not only have I made a two year commitment that I wish to fulfill, I have too many loose ends.

· First, I have begun a TOEFL prep club with four eager women who are committed for the next year.
· I also began a new club at the institute recently with my best students from last year. They want to put together a teacher resource book for students to use during their year of practicum or required teaching in the public schools.
· I prepared for but was unable to give a training session on the use of the new audio equipment at the institute.
· My host sister from training is pregnant, and I want to see her holding her child.
· I dedicated myself to a full year of teaching 110 second year students who expect to see my smiling face at least once a week.
· I have not been able to visit either Lebop or Dashoguez.
· I began a club not for the best students, but for the worst students in an effort to give them a second chance to catch up.
· I designed 12 training sessions for PST that I was unable to put into use. I want the chance to do that next year.
· I have become part of a support network of volunteers. It may be cliché, but we feel like family. I can’t imagine leaving them now.
· I am excited to meet with five or six of my most excited teachers who recently began to ask me for various communicative games to set them up for each week’s lessons, games that they play in class.
· I want to improve both my Russian and my Turkmen.
· I would like a chance to redo the ECA that I helped with last year. I learned so much and want to put what I learned to use.
· Last week I discussed the difference between ethnicity, nationality, and culture with one of my classes. I want to continue that discussion.
· I have not been able to go on a walk with one of my teachers who lives very near to me. I promised her I would.
· Finally, I have not properly told anyone goodbye.

I do not wish to parade my list of accomplishments. I merely wish to assert the importance of this past year and my desire to return to a place that I now call home.

Thanks again for your support!

Tess Elmore