The Next Chapter Begins...

9/10/08
The Peace Corps staff met with today to discuss the lack of structure and support at the village during my site visit. It was collectively decided that I will be moved to a new village where I will be introduced to the community by active chiefs and principals unlike my experiences of two weeks ago. I’m mentally battling with my moral obligations to the community of the village who has prepared for my arrival. I am teeter-tottering over my intuitive feelings and I am attempting to untangle the ethical knots that have gnarled my rational thoughts. While I encountered many challenges during my site visit and I did not have the support of a supervisor, at least it was becoming familiar. Now I am faced with the great unknown again.

9/11/08
It is time for me to say goodbye yet again. Farewells are the most difficult elements of a journey. They are inevitable and often plentiful along the way. New destinations appear and then disappear while new characters are introduced and then part ways. As my biography continues to be written, I find it agonizing to say goodbye to a family that has welcome me unconditionally and supported me through my infant stage in South Africa. They have taught me to crawl and how to be independent. They have encouraged my individuality to shine through the assimilation of culture. They have nurtured me and offered affection and love. I will leave a piece of me behind in the village and bring something that I have learned from each of the Sathegke family members with me on my voyage. The memories that I have formed here will always remain my heart.