Swearing-in as a Peace Corps Volunteer

The swearing-in ceremony took place a week after site announcements.  All of our supervisors traveled to Okahandja in order to learn more about the volunteer’s role and to escort us back to our sites.

The ceremony honestly meant more to me than either my high school or university graduations.  I felt pride for my fellow volunteers and also for myself.  I was humbled by the work put in to preparing for it, as the venue was stunning.

My host mother, Belinda, took off work to attend which I am so grateful for.  She even arranged for me to borrow a traditional Oshiwambo dress from a neighbor.

Peace Corps gave us an opportunity to show the room what we had learned during our 10 weeks of training.  My language group and I had learned a song from the grade 10 learners at Nengushe so we taught it to the other volunteers to perform.

The looks on the faces of the supervisors and host families when we burst out in an Oshiwambo song: priceless.  It was certainly a crowd pleaser.  I can’t remember the last time I felt confident leading a song in a performance, so this was a fun moment for me.

The next morning I hopped on a bus with the other volunteers and supervisors traveling to the Oshana Region and, 8 sweaty hours later, arrived at my new home.

I’ve been here for 2 days now and it’s kind of surreal.  I realized I’ve moved homes at least yearly since the age of 15.  I move to Africa to settle in for 2 years…funny how that worked out.

I am living on a homestead with a family but in my own modern house.  I have electricity and indoor plumbing, although the water is scarce here and is often turned off during the day.  The Namibian government has provided me with a fridge, stove/oven, and some furniture.  I have more than I ever anticipated and still get the peace of living in a small village.

I can see the school from our yard so it might take me 5 minutes to walk there.  My previous host family lives maybe 1 km away so I can visit them regularly.  Maggie, my nearest PCV, is about 10 km away so we can meet up for shopping in Ondangwa on the weekends.

I’ve already become friends with my new host sister, Olyvia.  She is 17 and a learner at Nengushe.  I love having another girl around.  We’ve also become workout buddies so I plan on coming back to the States with a ripped body…only half joking.

I’m looking forward to start working with the school tomorrow and really just to get into a routine.  My nerves have been out of whack from all the changes and unknowns.  Finally, I have a small sense of stability, even with the language barrier and lack of my American safety bubble of fellow volunteers.

It seems like I have plenty of people in the community to support me so I’m never really alone, just adjusting slowly to a new life.

Site Announcement

Community-based training lasted a month and then we all returned to Okahandja for the last bits of training and the site announcements. 

The time spent together was more of a family reunion for all of us.  We went to a beautiful resort to swim in a pool and our social committee organized “Peace Corps Prom,” a dinner party to celebrate our last week as trainees.

Group 42 is my family here and my strongest support system as I move forward in my service.  I had a wonderful time with them and wish them the best on their assignments.

Site Announcement Day

We had our language exam in the morning to monitor how we’d been progressing.  I scored a Novice High which indicates I need some extra help.  I’ve since identified my host sister as a tutor and she will work with me for an hour each day until the end of November.

Learning a new language has been one of my biggest frustrations since arrival.  I hope to keep that in mind as my students struggle with English.

In the afternoon of the same day, the trainers blindfolded us and walked us to various locations on a giant map of Namibia (made out of string in the yard of the community center).  They handed us folders containing our assignments.  When everyone was in their spots, we took off our blindfolds to reveal where we were standing and what the folders read.

It was especially exciting for those of us in the North because we were so close we were touching.  Before I knew where I was, I knew one of my favorite people, Maggie, was my neighbor.

The folder I was holding read: Nengushe Junior Secondary School in Okaku, Oshana.  If you’ve been following my blog, you will know that this is the same location where I spent the last month of my community-based training.

I feel so fortunate to return to this lovely school where the students and teachers already know my name. Part of the integration process has already been started for me.

They want me to teach grade 8 English and to start an ICT program (computer lab).  Apparently, the school has been waiting for a class set of laptops for about a year and we don’t know when they will arrive.  I will do what I can with what we have though.  I might get an opportunity to work in the Kindergarten as well.  More on that later. 

My service is beginning to take shape as I prepare to leave the training program.  It's far more exciting to see what I will be doing with my community.