In the Interim

Since the bump in the road, which was my last update, I've returned home to the states. After having spent 4 days in the capital of Malawi, primarily talking about the "next steps" with my country director and the medical staff in-country, a decision was made to put efforts towards finding a lesser health risk country of service for me.  What goes into this process is more than just paperwork, time, and energy. There are also emotions for the friends and family who have supported me thus far that I am dealing with. So "in the interim" I felt warranted to update this blog and say that I am okay but for the sake of uncertainty on whether I'll be leaving again, I am also reserved in my attachments. I want to extend my sincerest thanks to anyone that has prayed for my safety, well being, and contributed to the direction in which I've gone. There have been endless new beginnings and faces along this journey, ones in which I wouldn't have ordinarily come across. For all of these things to God be the glory. I couldn't have done any of this alone.

Host Family and my 1st Bump In The Road

I just finished lunch and have been advised that I'll be going to Nkomeko. That is the village where I'll meet Mercy Edward, which appears that my host mom is a single parent. Quite honestly I feel like I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be. It's weird b/c I dont' have much communication with the world I left behind but last night I made an amazing connection with the world in which I'm living. My group conducted a talent show and as participation by our trainers, who are Malawian Locals, they sang us their national anthem. I had a tear in my eye b/c although I had no clue what they were saying, they sang it with great pride. It just hit me all at once that I'm really a foreigner and what is traditional and customary conduct for them is their "normal". I think from afar, living in America and ingesting too much T.V., that often times it's easy to criticize or wrinkle the brow about other lands but when you get there and experience it, I'm the weird one. In any event, in return we sang our national anthem for them and it was a great moment #CulturalExchange

After the events of the beginning of the evening, once pitch blackness had fallen upon us we all gathered at the Futbol field, turned out the flashlights & head lamps and looked at the most amazing night sky I had ever seen. It was like sitting in 3 planetariums at one time. I never saw anything like it. I saw the southern cross and conselations I had never dreamt of beholding with my one good eye :) To close out the evening we joined some of the locals for dancing #TheBestNightEver

I have reached my 1st Bump in The Road here in Malawi which has brought me to the capital (Lilongwe) where our PC Headquarters are. I don't have very many details b/c Washington, DC has not yet started their work day but by being here I have a medical hold in which I'm under. No I'm not sick at all so hopefully no one worries about sickness because I'm making it clear that I AM NOT SICK :)  But there has to be a discussion that would be in the best interest of a "worst case scenario" for the well being of my health where Malaria is concerned. Everyone here in Malawi is attentive to this detail and I hope to have more information either later today or tomorrow #PatientlyWaiting ...send prayers up for the kid, pretty please

Learning a New Language - 03-02-2011

• Bantu Languages is the language of the people here in Malawi. I'm learning Chichewa to be specific.
• I had my 1st cup of African coffee made by Nestle #Nice
• I've gotten some more shots: Minigitis, Typhoid, Yellow Fever, Hep A & Hep B #I'mAChamp
• I'm on Mefloquine (sp?) - gotta take it every Monday for the next two years and it has some serious side effects
• "Think Globally, Act Locally" **a trainer told me this and it made me thin no matter where I am I must take action in order to give back. But while giving back whether abroad or even at home, treat it all as a local effort an be willing to grow and let grow :)
• Estimated statistics for service rendered by volunteers in Malawi can help 360,000 anually; the sector of Health that I'm in helps 15,000 pregnant women and 15,000 individuals stricken with AIDs #GreatToBeAPartOfTheMovement
• I've had my 1st allergic reaction but it wasn't from shell fish, probably the fresh picked mango or pineapples I ate. Matter of fact there is only fresh water fish here so I know a lot went into my placement to help with that little hiccup in my diet; I've taken something Benadryl-ish 2:20 p.m.
• At 6p.m. my reaction is gone
• My 1st PCV payment made me feel 3rd-World-Rich which is equivalent to "hood rich". I mean they've already given us everything we need to survive

My prayer: Thank you Lord for your traveling mercy and a chance to cary out your plan. I'm enjoying the education I'm being given and am grateful that you saw fit to use me at this magnitude. I lvoe you Lord and trust your will/plans for my life. Thank you for your faithfulness

• 10:10 p.m. 1st bout of diarrhea here in the mother land and there we have it the side effects of my Malaria meds have kicked in #NotFun
• I've learned/played 2 games since beng here: The Settlers of Catan an Banana Grahams (similar to scrabble) #TimePasserActivities
• Tomorrow I go to Dezda to get toilet paper and a few items for my home stay. I'm a little nervous but look forward to it

Laundry Day Already - 03/01/2011

So here in Malawi we are minus the luxury of washing machines and other things used to produce a good stain removing wash cycle. So the hands it is :) (Pics will come later). I just washed smoe of my clothes in a bucket for the first time eer. I been getting up around 5:30 for the past 2 days. I took a 1 1/2 mile hike up a mountain area and was able to see the entire village of Dezda. I've not taken many pictures as I've liked but the camera is charging as we speak. I really wish they would provide me wih the ability to purchase stamps so I can release my thoughts and send letters. The expectation has been a little skewed as with any such program. WE've been treated well but the disconnect and ability to have MK (Malawian Currency called Kwacha) to purchase stamps...well let's just say still no african dough and my American money is no good. Enough of all that for now...

Mailing Facts
To mail a 10 gram letter it is 140MK
To mail a post card takes 95MK

Peace Corps Malawi 2011 - 02/28/2011

Last day of February but my 2nd day of Peace Corps Service in Africa. The airport was amazing upon arrival in Malawi. All of the current PCVs (Peace Corps Volunteers) were there to greet us and they cheered us so loudly, it made me feel like one of the Beatles or the Jackson 5 was getting off the plane. #Classic

But rewind just before that..I left Philly at 2:30a.m., got to JFK in New York by 4:45 but the gate didn't open til 7. #WaitingPatiently Then our flight didn't leave until 10:30 #MoreWaitingPatiently I was super tired, but called a few peeps to say my final goodbyes and then took flight for 15 hours to Johanesburg South Africa. Once I landed there I caught a transfer flight to Lilongwe, Malawi which was 2 1/2 hours. Last lef of the trip was a flat-face-scooby-doo van ride to Dezda which was about 2 hours. I finally arrived and for the 1st time of long standing tradition to lose things along the way, this is the first group that recieved everything we traveled with. It's also the largest group #45StandingVolunteers

My first meal was nsima, white rice, red beans, chicken, fresh cut spinach, and bananas. They have tea time everyday around 3p.m. and where I don't generaly drink much tea in the states, I enjoy the break it gives here for fellowship. Now for the night time...my 1st night was rough. I had 2 horrible dreams and was jolted out of my sleep only to feel literally trapped in the mesquito net that I will use for the next 2 years in order to prevent being bit by mesquitos or bugs. I turned my flashlight on to grab the phone and send out a text only to remember I don't have phone service. And so the tears begin to fall and I prayed to God to craddle me back to sleep. I forgot to mention the shower here...let's just say that it was so cold it made my spine fold down the middle #Brrrr

Staging in Philedelphia - 02/24/2011

So I made it to Philedelphia fairly early. My "see you laters" didn't go as expected but I pray for safe travels over myself and for great health so that my return will erase the not-so-good part of departing. Tahnk you Lord for your love, mercy, faithfulness, and belief in me to carry out a task such as serving others in a 3rd world country. I pray for an increase in wisdome while away and multiplied moments of learning in order to do your will to the best of my ability #FallingInLoveWithJesus

Disclaimer: This is a direct excerpt from my journal on the date that's listed although I'm just now uploading my entries #BarelyAnyInternetAccessHere

And So The Journey Begins

And so the journey begins in Philadelphia. Like so many others who have come before me to serve abroad I ask myself "Dawn are you sure"? YES!

02/23/2011 My "see you later"'s didn't really go as planned but I pray a prayer over myself that covers me from the crown of my head to the soles of my feet, for health, strength, and increased education/wisdom, for a return after this journey is over that will allow me to say "it's good to see you again, friend(s) & family". Virtual hug to all of those I didn't get to embrace prior to departing.

02/24/2011 Just met my roomie for the staging event. She's cool, and quite the sharp knife in the drawer. I feel blessed to be received warmly and look forward to how I'll be impressed upon by my other counterparts.

Emotionally I'm ready to give to Malawi and the Peace Corps the love that God has given to me. He has been faithful, and believes in me to carry out a task as great as this one, to serve globally, and honestly at times I haven't always felt worthy enough to be called to do something such as this. Thank you Lord for having me in your plans despite my ways.

My friend Myca sent me a message earlier in the week and told me this would be "EPIC". I looked up the term as I generally do whenever my infatuation for a word renders my use of it in proper context in order to convey a feeling, and so I think I'll end this with a little word of the day :)

Epic
extending beyond the usual or ordinary,
especially in scope or size


serving the Lord is worth wearing my guise

I've grown out my hair
adjusted my clothes
just so I'm able to be given His robe
the story is written
the parable told
I've been given 1 talent
but 10 will unfold

AND SO THE JOURNEY BEGINS..... #ThisWillBeEpic

An Ode To The Cliches About Time

Cliches, oh how many of them I've heard in my lifetime and so this blog is "An Ode To The Cliches About Time". Just to give a quick snap shot on why this seems to be the theme playing over and over in my mind, it's because of the following: 1)A friend of mine had a birthday this past Sunday. She was up in Philly visiting her mother who was suffering from a liver illness. Well on Sunday guess what??? No more guessing, "time's up"! Her mother passed away. I couldn't even bring myself to say "happy birthday" because what's happy about a circumstance such as that. The one who brought me into this world left 30+ years to the date of having given birth to me. I can't even stomach that feeling let alone find comfort in the asylum of time 2)Another friend of mine who I've known for nearly 10 years, she's been known to suffer from seizures but none as severe as the one that left her lying cold on Sunday, only to be found Monday....dead. I guess it was "her time" is what I've been told 3)The third person in this "ode to time" is one who will be leaving for an East Caribbean P.Corps assignment on 01/27/2011, just 8 days away. Whew I guess you can say "time is winding down".

Time...it waits for no one. Will you be ready when it's time? What have you been doing with your time? Use your time wisely. The time has come. I guess it was just his/her time? All things will happen in due time? Time heals all wounds. Give it some time. You better hurry up or else you'll run out of time! There's no time like the present. What time is it, it's game time? Maybe next time. This just isn't your time. Just give me a little more time. When the Lord says it's time. Time is winding down. Time is up. It's almost time. etc, etc, etc.  TIME TIME TIME TIME TIME TIME TIME TIME TIME TIME TIME TIME TIME TIME TIME TIME TIME!!!!

"Woo-saa"...now that I've gotten that out of my system!!!!!! One things for sure is this, no matter what , time is the undeniable measurement of "what's left" on our things to do list. I'd better wrap this blog up, make haste and go use my time to be about the Lord's business. It's time to dig a little deeper because I cringe to think about my buzzer going off and there still being things left to do when it's time to go to Malawi and my family having to pick up my slack for what Dawn should have already accomplished, or taking my last breath on this earth only to see God holding a long scroll of all the stuff that Dawn didn't do but was supposed to do. These expressions are based on convictions from seeing things happening on the inner and outer skirts of my circles of influence. It's not to say that any of the named above haven't used their time wisely but rather me saying if I was in any of their shoes, I wouldn't be 100% ready because I still need just a little more time.

2011 ....7 Weeks Left

I really fell off from this whole blog thing. It's not nearly as easy as I thought it would be. I surely over estimated my frequency using this medium of communication but in having done so it wasn't for any reason in particular. Some days I wasn't bored enough, some times I just didn't feel like it, and quite honestly there have been some tough days of tears that I care not to divulge via-internet. All in all I foresee this being a necessary tool to use once I've gotten to Malawi and settled in, but until that time in my mind, my heart, and with my free time I'm just counting down, making the days with family & friends count, and preparing for quite the transition. 2011 has finally arrived; I'm blessed to be apart of it. Guess there's no more of that, "I'm leaving for Africa next year" when people ask when does the Peace Corps assignment begin. My time has come. #7WeeksLeftTilDeparture

A Part of The Process

Often times I've stared at the "bigger picture" so long that I foolishly missed the intricate details that are all "a part of the process", but not on today. So I finally moved in with mom and have not been back home since I left for college in 1998. I said in a previous post that initially I had a little anxiety about this but now I've embraced it entirely and am just thankful to have a mom to come home to. As I unpack and condense my life as much as possible, I start to think that in so many ways this is out of my "comfort zone" but the start of my necessary isolation period. Yes, it's self induced but non the less it's still a detachment. All of what I've known for my entire independent life is now paused, reserved, conformed, and realigned to follow suit with this step of my journey. It's not unrealistic for a Peace Corps assignment to change or a date to be altered so that is going to dictate how long I'll be here with my mother. To pass my time I'm hoping to do the following: read most of the books I've collected from thrift stores and Barnes & Noble over the past 2 years in order to make me a more educated business woman; I'd like to add my financial(s) for my company to the business plan I'm almost done writing; I'd like to make some minor adjustments to my website; and lastly, I want to ensure that mom has no worries with my financial obligations while I'm away so I'm tying up loose ends. Two months will fly by so I'd better get started..... #necessaryadjustment

2 for 1

This is a 2 for 1 post because I've quickly fallen behind over the last two days but I'll condense my happenings and thoughts into this one re-cap.

Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving....in the midst of chaos and it marking the worst holiday I've ever had, I can still firmly declare my gratefulness for my mother, my sister, and my friends.

Today started out rough. I had to re-commit to my future and remind myself that my past was yesterday, and today is a new day. I got really great advice from an old friend who said this, "Dawn when you leave, you should do it with a free heart, not weighed down by loose-ended troubles". So I made up in my mind that I would leave empty for Malawi in order to be filled adequately by the experience that awaits me. Also, I'm moving in with my mother tomorrow morning. I didn't initially think I'd look forward to it seeing as I haven't been back since high school but I'm actually embracing this part of the process. I'm thankful to have a mother to go back too.

Thanksgiving Day

I'm thankful for my family, friends, stable mind, able body, health, strength, and personal relationship with God. He's been so good that one day is simply not enough to express my gratitude so tomorrow, the next day, and the next I'll continue to be thankful.

Holidays Aren't The Same When You Exchange Your Life For Fame

Today marks the day of preparation for many families who will fellowship on tomorrow for Thanksgiving. Today there will be plenty of cooking over conversation and cocktails. Perhaps this is going to be the highlight of the day for millions of families across America, including mine. In my past I've generally brought my grateful attitude along side my hearty appetite, on the day before and the day of Thanksgiving, but this year it's going to be different. This year I find it necessary to tarry a little longer with loved ones because I won't share in such an occasion among them in 2011.

I woke up this morning feeling like holidays aren't the same when you exchange your life for fame. Fame in what sense you may be thinking? For me personally, it means to publicly open my life up for observation of my character during service abroad, and to be critiqued microscopically by my U.S. counterparts (family, friends, or acquaintances) and even those parties in the foreign land in which I'll travel. I will also forgo so many things that I'm used to doing, having, experiencing, seeing, and being a part of. One of those very things are U.S. Holidays, especially Thanksgiving. This year they just will not be the same because I think to myself that I've never missed one, so this year I must find it in me to love beyond the midnight oil and soak up the laughs so that I can replay them along my journey because next year I'll miss one. I ask myself daily is it going to be worth it? I smile, connect with my heart to the bigger picture, and then I re-commit. #again&again&again

Tragedies, Mishaps, and Memorials

The 90 day countdown isn't even two days underway and man has it already been a little mind boggling. I was burning the midnight oil from having had such a productive day on yesterday when my surfing the world wide web produced a link titled "Fallen PCVs", which stands for Fallen Peace Corps Volunteers. The site is dedicated as a memorial to those people who died while serving in their host country. It's filled with their courage, wonderful qualities but also it outlines the tragedies and mishaps that caused their death. It's bitter-sweet and naturally I thought to myself, "Dawn this is yet another possible reality".

So I'm reading names, looking at death years, and perusing over the many causes of deaths. Some volunteers fell to their death naturally, some took illness, some were killed, and some injured severely in accidents. But the overall gist of the site is to create a memorial for honoring the work, commitment, and service rendered, so in my sharing today I'm sharing the link: http://www.fpcv.org/fallen_pcvs.htm Here's to my "89 days to departure". My promise is that I'll always have the courage to be transparent as a way to expose my fears, mistakes, and/or hurts in order to help someone else. Again, this is apart of my journey and I won't pretend that it's perfect and that I don't have days of uncertainty or clouded thoughts. In closing this entry, this one thing is for sure: although my biggest fear has always been to die and still be full, it's far worth it to me to take the chance and risk dying by giving back to this world

90 Day Countdown

...here I am at the computer thinking to myself how many intricate task I have to address in order to comfortably leave for Africa for 2 years. ***deep breath, then exhale*** My mind has been in so many different places over the past month simply because I've got so much to do. Let's see:  I'm letting my hair grow out, thinking how many "dresses" I'd better take with me, making spreadsheets for the VIP (Very Important People) who will tend to my affairs while I'm away, organizing my life administratively so that I can carry it with me on a jump drive lol, getting ready to move in with my mom this week, downsizing so that I can learn to live simply, reading mandatory Peace Corps information daily, doing research about the culture I'll take up residence with in Malawi, and last but not least keeping my composure in the midst of it all. How do I do it? With the love of God, and the support of family & friends. I'm indebted and very grateful to those who have helped me get to this place be it close or afar. So here's to my first blog entry, and starting the clock for my 90 day countdown until my departure. I will attempt to update this once a day before leaving and as communication slows down, and technology disconnects me with the masses, I'll make every effort to blog once a week from Malawi