I completed my 2 years of Peace Corps service and returned to the US on June 22, 2010. This will be my final entry but I plan for this blog to remain online. Feel free to leave comments or questions and I will still respond for the foreseeable future.
My final day in the office was also my final full day in Mexico. After wrapping things up with my work, my coworkers held a potluck lunch in the office patio. The great food was followed by some tequila and a guitar sing-along (video here).
I’ll mostly remember this as a fun adventure and happy period. But it wasn’t completely. There was an underlying uneasiness in almost every situation – a sense of not belonging there even if people went out of their way to make me feel welcome. Unfortunately, after being away for 2 years I feel a little bit that way here in the US too. I plan to spend the summer re-adjusting and taking in the things I’ve missed: time with family & friends, public water fountains, live rock/blues, small talk, parks, and comfort foods.
There are many things that I didn’t write about over the course of the past 2 years but could have and probably should have: a Mexican girlfriend and her family, canyoning at Matacanes, camping at timber line, drug violence and immigration, eating/drinking strange new things (ant eggs, pig skin tacos, grasshoppers, corn fungus, fermented maguey juice), black market animal trade, OLPC in Mexico, cross-cultural weddings and much more.
My Peace Corps experience started with a change of career, country, and culture. It was not easy so I understand why a lot fewer people do it than think about doing it. But, it has been a great experience and was absolutely worth it. On the other hand, I admire and can even be jealous of the friends I left behind who settled down with new families. Maybe the grass is always greener on the other side of the border fence.
Good luck with everything Shane! Your blog has been a great source of info and fun. We appreciate your writing it. Have a great next adventure!
I think it’s always tough to move away and come back. You leave a part of yourself each place and don’t really fit anywhere for awhile. And things change while you are gone. And the grass is definitely always greener, but as long as you learn to love the grass you’ve got, you’ll be happy. Glad to have you back!