let go, let god

In March of 1961, President John F. Kennedy gave an executive order to start a volunteer program where young Americans would dedicate two years of service to a developing country with the hopes of providing needed skills while also creating a better understanding between our country and theirs. So 49 years later this is how I find myself spending two years of my life in the classrooms of a small Ukrainian town as a Teacher of English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) Peace Corps Volunteer.

After probably one of the most frustrating weeks, today I decided to pull out the Peace Corps “Core Expectations for PCVs.” I’m trying to regroup and rededicate myself to what it is I signed up for because with many bad days adding up I feel like I’m starting to become pretty apathetic about my being here.

1. Prepare yourself personal and professional life to make a commitment to serve abroad for a full term of 27 months.

2. Commit to improving the quality of life of the people with whom you live and work; and, in doing so, share your skills, adapt them, and learn new skills as needed.

3. Serve where Peace Corps asks you to go, under conditions of hardship, if necessary, and with the flexibility needed for effective service.

Here are some thoughts that are getting in the way of the top three expectations:

No being two places at once. This week I missed a good friend’s birthday, my mom’s 50th birthday, a family wedding shower as well as my sister’s baby shower which is today.

At the moment, I’m not feeling as though I’m improving the lives of people around me too much. Sure I give the old babushkas a kick when I try to speak in Ukrainian and the 3rd graders love me but they would probably enjoy a trained monkey too.

Serve where Peace Corps asked you to go… I had always pictured myself in a small mud hut preparing materials while I could hear the laughter of African children outside my window. I was ready to use a pit latrine, collect my water in buckets and be disconnected from modern technology. I never knew a long, cold, snowy winter in an eastern European country with many luxuries could be this hard.

But I guess I got to get past all that. My new motto for this experience is “let go, let God.” Next week is going to be a better week. Good days are coming…


Teachers room in between the break, notice all the flowers for women's day given to the teachers by students.


Haha they are going to hate their moms when they grow up. Some students performing a chicken dance routine.


Myself and Svitlana, one of the ENG teachers I work with. The other teachers thought we coordinated our purple shirts.


The spread of a Ukrainian teacher party.


Game is you draw something from the hat and have to do it. Here is one of my math teachers playing the drums on some bottles while singing with the director. She lucked out, I had to dance infront of everyone.


Victor, the math teacher and also the man who gave me my first Ukrainian kiss. Marisa if you see this he is waving hello to you.