50 years of Peace Corps seems to have made the world a little smaller

Happy 50th Birthday, Peace Corps! I am so proud to be a part of this organization, and it's exciting to join in its 50th year with over 200,000 volunteers preceding me.

I had a very interesting day yesterday as the world seemed to get a little smaller as often happens when I meet different people from around the world. Yesterday, though, was different. I met a few people through friends of mine - friends from little bitty old Clemson - who have served in Lesotho! My friend Julie (who is currently serving in Namibia) knows someone who served in Lesotho, and she was kind enough to email me offering to answer any questions. My good friend Jayson (who is currently serving as a PC-Response Volunteer in Colombia) met a couple people at his current site over the past few weeks who also just finished up their service in Lesotho. So now I have quite a network of RPCVs to answer questions and offer advice. I am so blessed to have these friends and these connections.

As the deadlines for my passport application, dental clearance, aspiration statement (seriously ANOTHER one??), and many other things approaches, I am getting more and more excited about this new chapter of my life. I have decided that research is great and all, but I need to pull myself away from Internet searches about Lesotho to spend time with actual humans who I enjoy and love!! Time is more precious than ever to me.

On this 50th anniversary of PC, I hope we all take a moment to appreciate previous generations of Peace Corps Volunteers. Through their dedication, compassion, humility, and open-mindedness, the work of current PCVs is undoubtedly richer than it would be had they not blazed the trail. Thank you for giving Peace Corps a good reputation throughout the world!