Yes, it's real.

We're off, out the gate, lit the fuse, in THE FINAL COUNTDOWN to leaving America in the dust and starting our new lives in Africa as Moz25 volunteers of the US Peace Corps.  Even though there are a few hours left until we are really at the no turning back point of take off; as I write this on the bus to NYC's JFK from Philly.  We really in my mind have begun the service.  Staging is in the books and the offer to rethink our decision and feel the gravity of what really is about to be our lives has been told to us and made clear.  That being said it's nice to say I still saw all 63 of us up this morning and willing to through our packed lives on the bus.  We are in it together and that was one of the better things that was clearly made to us at the close of our staging.  No one else, not friends, family, significant others, or phone line therapists will really understand and be able to weigh in on what we are going through.  Even though I'd like to think you all will live pretty vicariously through me in this blog, giving you the sense of sitting on my mud porch with me soaking it all in.  But never have I been in a situation with a group of strangers and very new friends that will have to band together and lean on others to struggle, persevere, and succeed like this.  Which is cool to think that just a group of somewhat young people can instantly become so close just over a mindset and common goal.  

A quote that one of our staging instructors had said that almost brought this whole idea of what I'm doing onto a whole other mindset level was, "while some of you have been waiting almost even three years to serve in the Peace Corps, you need to think about the communities you will be serving and that they also have been waiting a long time for you to arrive and help them," which caught me by surprise because I never occurred to me to of it being that serious for those people too.  Being kind of selfish I really had thought mostly of myself having to give up things and put forth the time and effort. Though she continued with, "and if you are to ET(early terminate) and leave, think of how they might take that.  As if they screwed up, made you unhappy or unwelcome and messed up with a person they had hoped for a good while to be in their community."  So already I feel more responsibility and sense of purpose for this than I had ever previously though about.  Which with as much pressure as it adds on my conscious, it feels a lot better to have than to not.  Giving me some more confidence and determination for this role I'm looking to step into.  

So next time I post in this, it will probably be from the good ole continent of Africa.  Excited for this 17 hour flight, being my only previous preparations of 2 hr max flights to condition me; it should be a blast! 

Deuces!

 Yeah.

The great migration begins, 

By waiting for the terminal to open.