“Wow, what was that like?!”– Making my way home.

I’m certainly beginning to think about coming home. About what I might do, where I might live. Where I should apply for jobs. But maybe most of all I think about how I will respond when people ask me “what was that like?” The thing about any question I will get about Georgia is that sometimes, the person inquiring probably isn’t actually going to be interested in the answer. I’m not trying to be pessimistic, just realistic. Why should they be? But they know they have to ask. I would be the exact same way. I am hypothesizing all of this. But maybe I will usually just get an “oh that’s cool” response.

 If an old friend or old acquaintance told me he/she lived in some foreign country for 2 years, I would certainly have asked the question. Same with a first date, or if I were interviewing someone for a job. It would be rude not to, and it seems like a question that could get an interesting answer. “Wow, what was that like?!”

But now I think that I would hopefully ask something more concrete. Something about the language spoken, political system, religion, or history. Something that can actually be answered. Maybe I would ask which 3 customs were the most different to American culture. The “what was that like?” question is so broad that it is paralyzing. I suppose this is part of the goal for an interview, which is why I will undoubtedly crunch together and polish off some 30 second elevator speech to hand over to anyone asking general questions about Peace Corps when I get back. But any question about the overall experience is just… it’s impossible to answer. Not because the experience is so crazy. Not because the person asking “How was Peace Corps?” is incapable of imagining life in Georgia (well usually not). But mostly because the time it would take to actually share the experience is too much. It’s not some simple story that can be easily wrapped into an elevator speech. It isn’t even a string of stories like a typical 2-week vacation. It is like an enormous thick braided rope that is all tied in knots. It can’t be untangled in 30 seconds.

I hope this doesn’t sound superior. I know that I’m not better than someone who has never been outside of the US, and for 99.9% of conversations, I won’t have some special insight from living abroad. Or at least I better not. That would get annoying.

I know that even when I’m not asked about Georgia, I am going to be constantly comparing in my head, at least at first. I will want to share stories. I have a million funny anecdotes to draw from, but many will not make sense to people who have not spent time in Georgia. I don’t want to be that guy constantly saying: “This one time in Georgia…. blah blah blah.” The thing about “This one time in Georgia” is that like I already said, it can’t be shared succinctly. Despite how incredibly funny or pertinent my story might be, it will always have to get stripped down for an audience that does not have the background knowledge.

At interviews, dates, parties, family get-togethers, and dinners with old friends, I will probably have to deal with this. Just like right now I have to deal with every single person asking me what I will do when I get home. (I don’t know yet, but I will be looking for work in the Seattle-Portland area so put me in contact with people if you know of any good opportunities). I am not at all worried to talk about my experience, but I am slightly confused about sharing it. Obviously the blog was not the most successful way. But part of the reason I stopped writing this blog is because I couldn’t imagine any reader truly sharing the experience, except for maybe when my host father died. But that was such a sharp, deep moment that I had to try and spend some time sharing it. There are a number of volunteer who have kept their blogs up to date, and I give them huge props. It just hasn’t always been the best way for me.

All of this makes me super thankful for all my fellow volunteers, and for the few people that visited me in Georgia. Obviously I am making a big generalization when I say that people will not actually be interested in my Peace Corps experience. My family, and close friends are going to ask about questions and be genuinely interested. I have mostly kept in touch with them via skype or email so it will be easier to answer them anyways. And I have no problem with the general questions. Before I came to Peace Corps, I was asking “How did you like it?” to returned volunteers, and I was genuinely interested in their answers. General questions aren’t disingenuous, and I won’t be remotely upset by the vague inquiries. I am just anticipating they will be very difficult to answer. There is a good chance I am wrong about all of this. Maybe I hear “oh that’s cool” and rarely get questions about what it was like. Either because they recognize that it isn’t a simple question, or because they aren’t interested. So they just avoid it. That’s possible too. I will find out sometime this year.

As far as making my way home is concerned, I am in no big rush to come home. I am making a number of summer travel plans so get in contact with me if you are interested in hearing about those :)