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.