Staging

Hello all, 

I am writing from L.A. California. Myself and 17 other volunteers spent the day at staging. Staging is a fancy name for meetings and introductions to the program and each other. I flew in from Denver and arrived around 10am, staging started at noon so I had plenty of time to get my luggage and catch a shuttle to the hotel where staging was held. I checked into the hotel, put my luggage in my room and was off to the meeting room. We went through registration and a handful of last minute details, which included a fax from home with my immunization form (I had to forget something, at least it was something that could be faxed) We continued the day with various meet and greet games and activities. I soon began to realize that I was not alone. Each one of the other 17 volunteers had similar feelings that I had. In the past week I have felt every emotion possible. Excitement, fear, anxiety, happiness, sadness, feelings of uncertainty and an emense amount of graditude. Sometimes all at the same time. It is an interesting feeling leaving for the Peace Corps. I was so sad to leave my life at home filled with amazing friends and an even better family, yet the anticipation and excitement of the adventure ahead kept me happy. I would be lying if I said I didn't cry. I did cry, a lot. Moving to another country for 27 months is not an easy thing to digest. I could tell that this group of young adults That I met today felt the same way, and it helped us connect. Tomorrow we fly to Hawaii then from Hawaii we have a 10 hour flight to Pohnpei, Micronesia. To all of you back home, know that I am thinking of you all the time. Yes this time is bitter sweet, but eventually it will be more sweet than bitter. In the words of Winnie the Pooh "How lucky am I to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard". Thank you all for all your loving words and support. More from me in Micronesia!

Jenny