Motivations

The count down to deployment to the Peace Corps has begun for my wife and I - we are just about five months away.  Before getting into the details of where we are going, what we will be doing, and perhaps most importantly, what we will likely be eating, I think it makes sense to take a step back to talk about how we got to this point.

I am not really talking about the "timeline" of when we got our medical check ups, when we had our first interview or heard that we were nominated.  Kate has laid this out chronologically much better than I ever could.  What I want to talk about is the decision to actually apply to the PC in the first place.

When Kate and I met our freshman year of college, it did not take take us long to realized how aligned we were in some of our major life goals, PC included.

This pic was one of our earlier shots, and as you might be able 

to tell from my profile picture, it was a lot of hair ago for me. 

It took us all of the first week of knowing each other to discuss joining the PC, and how it had been goals of both of ours individually since before high school.  It took even less time after that for me to realize that serving with this cute Idaho native would be pretty awesome.

In retrospect I often wonder what drives people to join up and serve in the PC.  It does not make a ton of sense from an economic standpoint to work for two years without pay; from a health perspective intestinal parasites and diarrhea for 27 months aren't exactly a walk in the park; and it clearly does not get you women...probably because of the aforementioned.

 I suspect that there are those that slip through the arduous PC application process, and desire simply to delay the onset of the Real World after graduating college.  Though I also suspect that these folks are either few and far between or are not truly prepared for the rigors of volunteering in the PC and end their service before fulfilling the 27 month commitment.  

My guess is that the motivation people have for joining up is the same thing that spurs people on to finish out the full 27 months: an honest and intrinsic desire to help others and improve lives in a real way; a curiosity of other cultures and a passion for learning about them; and a serious sense of adventure.  I find myself struggling to think how one might join the PC, let alone be successful, without even one of these motivations.

I bring this up for a few reasons.  First, as only my second blog post I think its important that you still get to know me and decide if my blog is right for you - its like our second date.  The qualities I listed above, I think, are some of my best and I hope will resonate throughout this blog.   So if you find yourself morally opposed to a sense of adventure, Ill save you some time, read no further.

Second, paraphrasing Socrates, I know that I don't know how difficult the PC will be (but I know it will be hard).  I think any sane and honest person about to confront the kind of challenge that the PC holds will tell you that they know that some of the best and most frustrating days of their life are just ahead.  Riding the good days is easy, but enduring through the tough ones will take something special.  On those kind of days, I want something tangible to hold on to, and I think it helps to articulate that motivation here.

If you are or ever have been in the PC, I am interested in what motivated you to apply.  Even better, on your worst day, what kept you from throwing in the towel?