After resending the required updated medical results, I had to wait to find out if they had medically cleared me for service. I was hoping to find all of this out before the dance recital on June 12th. Suffice it to say that didn't happen. The dance recital day, in and of itself, is crazy. Three shows in about 10 hours with hundred of kids at any given time. Everything was pushed out of my head. To make matters more difficult, this year we said goodbye to two graduating seniors - one I danced with when I was in the program and one I babysat when she was younger. To say a lot of tears were shed is a huge understatement. We made it through the day, pretty much intact, and I went home to drink a lot of water, eat some dinner, and sleep as much as possible.
When I got home, I checked the mail and there was an envelope from Peace Corps waiting for me. I wasn't sure what to expect. Was this like the college acceptance letters, where a packet was a better indication than just a letter? Did they just send letters and followed up later? Thankfully, it was the latter. For the probably millionth time that day, I burst into tears when I read that I had been medically cleared to join Peace Corps. Of course, the first person I called was my mom; the second, my boss at dance (and a VERY dear friend), Genie, who I think screamed and cried with joy with me.
After calming down, I read through the letter a few times. This was by no means an invitation to join. They would now be looking at all of my information and determining if there was a place where I could fit. While that was disappointing, I was so happy to even be cleared. I was on cloud nine and nothing could go wrong. Until it did...
The federal budget crisis hit. The Peace Corps had already taken a hit with their budget being cut and that caused them to put a freeze on hiring. Instead of leaving between July and August, 2011, my new timeline pushed me back to leaving between January and March of 2012. I shouldn't have been shocked. I work as a contractor for the federal government and saw the fallout of the budget issues first hand. But it was hard to be on the receiving end. I didn't think I'd have to wait, but wait I did. A few weeks after receiving the medical clearance, I received an email from Peace Corps thoroughly explaining the change in dates and asking if I was still interested. I sat on that for a couple days. On the one hand, this was a dream and something I'd always wanted. On the other - was I really sure I could wait that much longer? Could I really leave my girls in the middle of the dance year? I didn't want to break the commitments I already had, but could I really pass this up? In the end, I spoke to my mom, Genie, and a lot of my friends, who all encouraged me to follow my heart. I wrote back stating that I wanted to keep my application open and if any posts came open that needed an immediate filling, I was available.
In August, I received another email from a placement coordinator asking for some updated information and a good time to speak over the phone. I thought it was interesting, but I wrote him back. And just to make things that much more fun, on the same day, one of my best friends in the entire world called to ask me if I would be a bridesmaid at her wedding. I was thrilled since I had never been asked to be a bridesmaid, but a little nervous at the same time. Emily didn't know I was doing this, so I had to tell her. She's super excited about it and I am thrilled to still be able to be in her wedding.
The next day, the placement coordinator called me while I was in the middle of a staff meeting at work. We talked for an hour and a half in what was essentially a phone interview to gauge my continued interest. He told me about his time in the Peace Corps, asked me a bunch of questions, and we talked about my nomination. I told him that while the region wasn't what I had hoped for (the Balkans or Central Asia), the program was what I wanted (Youth and Community Development), so I was happy to go anywhere I was needed. He said he'd do what he could and that he was very comfortable giving me an invitation to serve as a Youth Developer. I had gotten my verbal invitation! All that was needed was to wait another 6-7 weeks to get my formal invitation in the mail.
Boy was it worth it! :-)
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