Waiting...again.

I'm torn between the anxiety about wanting to receive my official invitation and the contentment of enjoying life as it is, knowing in a few months it could all change.  Usually when someone's nominated for PC service they are given a country and tentative departure date.  I was given one date and three countries.  Don't get me wrong, I'm excited at all three possibilities...but it's hard to think about each of them individually and not start to get my heart set on any particular choice. I still haven't told a great number of people about my potential departure.  I'm tired of anwering the questions of 'where are you going? when do you leave?', with just a simple I don't know. I have no idea.  Because in all the PC related blogs and internet sites I've read, they tell you anything can and will change right up until the day you leave.  So basically, I could be going somewhere completely different than where I was nominated to go, in a completely different month.  I daydream about leaving; where I'll go, what I'll be doing, how hard the transition might be. I can't count the number of times I've envisioned the day I leave in my head, saying goodbye to all things familiar. I'm anxious to leave but also have so many things I want to do before I go. I'm in transitional agony.

Medically pre-qualified!

I got an e-mail yesterday morning from the Office of Medical Services letting me know that based on the health history form I'm medically pre-qualified for Peace Corps Service! My information is now being sent to the Placement Office, where they'll review my file and consider me for various countries of service.  Crazy to think my life is in their hands as far as where I'll be spending the next two years of my life.  I'm not sure how long it'll take to hear anything, but the next thing I hear should be an official invitation!

Starting the new medical process!

I've received several e-mails in the past few days regarding the new application process updates and the changing medical process.  I wasn't expecting to hear anything until August 15th, but today I got a few messages from the medical office prompting me to complete the Health History Form.  Basically I answered a bunch of questions about past/current medical issues, surgeries, health issues, etc.  Now that that's filled out I just wait to see what the next steps are for any follow-up I might need to do with regard to my medical history.  It's getting seriously real now, and I couldn't be more excited, but the nervousness and anxiety that's been in the back of my head the whole time is also getting much more real.  I'm still processing the idea of leaving in 6 months. Life as I know it is changing, and I'm trying to soak up every enjoyable minute I can while I think about the future and what's to come...

New medical process

In the past several months I've read countless blogs about Peace Corps experiences and application timelines, most of which have helped ease some of my anxiety and frustrations about this whole process.  However, now the PC is starting a new medical procedure, and since I'm among the first groups of people to try this whole thing out, there's unfortunately no blogs with helpful information about any of this.  I've read so much about the medical packet, what's entailed and how long it takes.  Now I just have to wait. again.  I have to wait until the new system is up and running on August 15th before I can know what's next. I'm doing my best to just enjoy the summer and pay off most of my credit cards in preparation to leave, but it's always on the back of my mind. Where will I go? When will I leave? What if something comes up medically/legally that will prevent me from going? So many unknowns and yet I can't stop myself from thinking about getting rid of most of my personal belongings in exchange for an amazing new life experience. Three weeks. I've been counting down since I got nominated. Three weeks.

Perspective

I've noticed a shift in my thinking and attitude as I get closer to the next steps of the application process.  I've begun trying to organize my belongings and get rid of things that I've held onto for far too long for some reason.  I'm trying to take stock of what I can keep and what I'll eventually have to get rid of before I leave - a significant challenge to say the least. In my efforts to pay off my credit cards and try to save a little money before leaving I've refrained from spending money on clothes and other materialistic things (also because I'm aware of how much stuff I have and the fact that I'll have to do something with it before I leave).

There's something comforting about getting rid of all the things that don't really matter and preparing to pack up my life (although my potential departure is still months away).  It's like the ultimate detox. I've spent so much time acquiring clothes, shoes, accessories, decorations, and hundreds of other things that have all but lost their value, sentimental or otherwise.  I've daydreamed about getting rid of everything except for the clothes and supplies I would need for traveling the world, and doing just that - starting with Peace Corps and even beyond. I'm excited for the next chapter of my life to start, and I want it to be filled with the kinds of experiences that I can only get from traveling the world.

This is the part of the application process I read so much about: waiting.  Waiting for the new medical clearance process to get started, waiting to see if I'm approved, waiting to see where I could be spending 27 months of my life.  I've done so much reading and researching about Peace Corps in general, as well as the countries I could possibly be going to, and it's hard not to look at one or all of them without thinking about living there.  It's hard to keep my mind open to the possibility that my invitation could be to a completely different country than one of the three I was nominated for (which apparently happens quite often in the application process).  I'm anxious to know, to find out what happens next and where I could be going; but at the same time I'm trying to appreciate what could be my last summer in the country for a few years.  I've started to mentally prepare myself as far as everything I'll have to go through in preparation to leave the country...what I'm going to do with all my personal belongings, what will happen with various contracts I have (cell phone, gym membership, lease - all of which can be taken care of, but nonetheless still something I need to think about).  Another month or so and hopefully I'll be on my way to being medically cleared.  I'm very curious about this new medical clearance process they'll be rolling out, and I just hope it's smooth and efficient enough for me to move through rather quickly. 

Nomination!

I got a call from my recruiter yesterday morning and I'm officially nominated for the Peace Corps! I'm nominated for youth development programs leaving in January 2013 with possibility of service in North Africa, Asia, or the Caribbean! I'm still trying to process everything but I'm so excited. I have to wait until August to get started with the new online medical clearance procedures, then if everything gets approved I should find out where I go and when I leave sometime late fall. I'm trying to wrap my head around the fact that in 7 months or so I could be packing up to leave for 27 months in a country I've never been to. It's hard to believe, really, and I'm not telling many people yet because for some reason I think it might jinx it or something. For now I think I need to start preparing myself and my life for an amazing new adventure.