I spent the last days in my community preparing to leave, emptying out my house and saying goodbyes. Last Friday I went to school and gave back some items that the school had lent me for my house. A good amount of the teachers weren’t there, but the present ones were having an early lunch. They invited me to join them for fried fish. During lunch they said a few nice words and gave me a few parting gifts. My last day was Sunday, Feb. 23rd, when I left my community with nothing but two bags, a large hiking backpack and a normal school backpack. My host mother had been preparing a friend and me meals, since I had given away all my leftover food, refrigerator, and electric stove. As breakfast was finishing up and I was going to check on the truck out, I asked her if she would give me the honor of taking a picture with her. She refused, saying it would make her too sad. She started to cry, which of course made me cry as well.
It was the first of many tearful goodbyes.
Volunteers spend their last week of service preparing for Close of Service, or COS. It’s a ton of running around, getting blood drawn and getting last minute prescriptions and turning in grant forms and filling out lots of paperwork. There were certainly moments where I cursed the organization and bureaucracy in general for making the process so difficult. In the end, though, everything worked out. When one of the staff members who reviews our checklist to ensure everything has been done said I was finished, she congratulated me as many others had done. I felt so incredibly light, like a weight had been lifted from my shoulders.
I made it. Despite all the times I wanted to give up and go home, I made it through. I persevered. And I’m so glad I did.
Volunteers spread out between a few different hotels and hostels, but we do our best to maximize the amount of time we spend together. Last night we all went out and had a great time, taking over a bar and playing our own music from a volunteer’s iPod. The end of the night, as has happened throughout these past few days, brought with it inevitable goodbyes. These are people with whom I have struggled and triumphed. They are my best friends because we shared so much together, far beyond just two years of service. It’s hard to think about, but it’s going to be a while before I see some of them. I refuse to believe I will never see them again, because it’s too depressing to think about.
I commemorated the end of my service with a haircut. Catherine, one of my best volunteer friends, had talked about taking me to a roadside barber to get my hair cut Panamanian style. Faux hawks are popular, and a lot of young men get them done with all kinds of extra decoration on the sides of their head, stripes and stars and other crazy designs. After politely refusing or brushing it off I relented and went with her yesterday to do it. It was a great choice. I’ve never gotten so many compliments. Looks so ridiculous, yet so great.
This will not likely be my last post on this blog, but it certainly is as a Peace Corps volunteer. We'll have to see what comes next. For now, it'a bit of travel. See you all in Colombia and Ecuador!
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