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 :)
