Done and Doner

On June 3, 2010, I finished my service as a Peace Corps Volunteer and was "gonged out" by the PC admin at the Yaounde office. It was nice to hear the words of thanks, inspiration, and reassurance that we had actually made a difference in Cameroon. Although, I'm still on the fence on whether or not any difference was made with my presence, I guess I'll never really know. As my program director said, "Being a teacher isn't as clear cut as being an agro volunteer, you don't plant trees and see them grow....who knows, maybe one day some one will come and cut them down (lol), but in teaching, your students remember you and the things you have taught them for years to come", so let's hope that I taught them some things worth remembering.

Unfortunately, my last month in Cameroon was a difficult one. Saying goodbye to friends that I might not see again was difficult. You feel bad that you are leaving and going back to a better place and leaving them to stay in that dusty, malfunctioning world where standing in line is a revolutionary concept that most people aren't willing to accept. Honey's passing made the last 3 weeks worse and I may have, probably for sure, left Cameroon a little (very) bitter. We both loved Honey a lot and it kills me that we got so close to bringing her home and we couldn't. I think of her often and see her in Cricket believe it or not, so I take joy in that and try to remember Cameroon with out that part of my service.

Getting Buddy and Cricket home turned out to be a lot easier than I had thought, the worst part was dealing with the baggage handlers at the airport in Cameroon, each one of them wanted me to give them "motivation" for putting Buddy on the plane....in other words, they wanted me to give them money to do their job. I didn't give them anything and had the flight attendants tell me when he was loaded on the plane and he made it without delay.

I'd just like to say to my fellow volunteers of the 08' SED/Ed Stage and my 2 post mates, that it was a privilege and an honor to serve with you all. I'm lucky to have spent 2 years with you in Cameroon and hope to see you in the near future, and as Bill Murray once said, "Buddies for life I think".

Fare well.