3 weeks

It's almost been three weeks since I left home... Wow. It seems so much longer than that. Currently I'm sitting at a internet cafe in Bo with my host brother Emmanuel.

Let me tell you all, It has been a great three weeks. I live with a wonderful family that takes very good care of me. I have a mother, grandmother, and many aunties and uncles at my house. There are also many children. At home I spend most of my time hanging out with the family on the veranda or teaching Spanish which my brother Emmanuel is picking up very quickly. It's nice to utilize my Spanish here because I'm concerned about losing it, so I'm more than thrilled to teach it. We also play cards and occasionally watch video and throw the Frisbee.

Training has been fine. The day can be very long sometimes, but I really enjoy getting to know all the other trainees and the other volunteers that come here to support us during training. Learning the language has also been fun. I do not speak it perfectly, but I'm slowly picking it up.

The staff has been incredible. All the Sierra Leoneans have been so welcoming that it is hard (basically impossible) to feel uncomfortable.

The weather also hasn't been too bad either. I mean, I sweat a lot, but it is not as hot as I thought it would be! (Even though I haven't even experienced the "hot" season yet).

This will be a brief post (sorry), but I just wanted to let you all know that I'm doing just fine! My stomach hurts once in a while, but that's small to the other problems I could have.

I promise I will include some more insightful posts later, but during training my time is filled and it's hard to sit down and type everything out.

Miss you all! Also, send me a package or letter! My host brother would like to see a book about Wisconsin so send me one if you have it.

Here a some highlights of the past three weeks:

-Meeting the Ambassador of Sierra Leone to the U.S.
-Meeting the Ambassador of the U.S. to Sierra Leone
-Meeting the President of Sierra Leone
-The short five minute conversation with my parents on the cell phone.
-Eating a lot of good Sierra Leonean food (Groundnut Soup and Kasada Leaf and too many others to list are great).
-Slowly building up my tolerance for spicy food
-Celebrating independence day with an epic football (soccer) game.
-Jogging up mountains
-Meeting so many incredible people.

Wi Go Si Bak!! (See you all later)

PS. I will find out my site within the next couple of weeks. I'll keep you posted!

My Peace Corps Timeline

A number of other  Peace Corps volunteers post in their blogs about their application and placement process. I figured I might as well post mine so others hoping to apply for the Peace Corps can understand the process.

October 18, 2012: I turned in the application after scrutinizing every tiny detail only to discover later that I left out some information that became a huge factor for my placement.

Early/Mid-November: I corresponded with the Peace Corps Recruiter in Chicago via phone and email. In these emails and phone calls they asked some simple personal questions as a way to prepare for the  potential interview.

November 30, 2012: I drove to Chicago from Dubuque to have my interview. Had a lovely day strolling the streets of downtown Chicago to calm by nerves before the interview I spent most of my young adult life waiting for. 

The interview went great and found I should have included information about my past tutoring experiences, so the Recruiter sent me an attachment via email to fill out which I promptly sent in the next day. 

December 18, 2012: Received my nomination for a position in Youth Development departing in July.

Late December 2012: Drove from Madison to Dubuque during winter break from classes because I was silly and did not realize that I was having the Peace Corps send packets to the wrong address. The packet I was picking up was the legal kit.

January 3, 2013: Mailed in my fingerprints.

February 13, 2013: Legally cleared!!!

February 15 and 17, 2013: Received and sent in a Youth Development questionnaire via email. I changed the earliest date I could leave from July 2013 to June 15, 2013.

February 27, 2013: After being told I would not hear anything for a good 4-6 weeks, I just happened to look in my email and then passed out. Just kidding. But to my surprise, on that day I received my invitation to serve as an Secondary English Teacher in Sierra Leone, Africa with a departure date of June 18, 2013. 

March, April, May: I sent in a great deal of forms to the Peace Corps. It is highly recommended that you turn them in as soon as possible, especially the passport and visa forms. 

May 3, 2013: Medically cleared after a number of doctor's appointments and running back and forth between Dubuque and Madison. Then all I had to do was prepare for June.

June 17, 2013: Staging in Philly.

June 18, 2013: Hasta luego, United States. Kushe, Sierra Leone!!

My application and placement were really quick. The amount of time from the date I turned the application in to the date I actually depart is only 8 months, which isn't always the case for other volunteers, because for some it can take over a year. You need to be as flexible as possible with the Peace Corps. If you make the process all about where you want to go, it's not going to be a smooth process. I basically said yes to whatever the Peace Corps asked of me and that made everything much easier. You need to be willing to move out of your comfort zone and not expect this process to be all about you. You are helping other people out, they didn't choose to be where they are. All in all: you need to learn to be flexible!!! 

I know Sierra Leone will be a little hot and humid. I know I will not have all the luxuries I have here in the U.S. I know what I am getting myself into and I cannot wait. This is not just about myself, this is about all the amazing people I will meet very soon.

I have some vital information!

Hey all,

A number of people have asked me what my address will be in Sierra Leone and here it finally is:

Joshua Utter
Peace Corps Volunteer
P.O. Box 905
Freetown, Sierra Leone
West Africa

So letters, care packages (filled with Oreos), or whatever else can be sent there.

It is getting very close to departure. I leave in about 12 days. AHHH. My last few days here will be spent visiting with friends and family and packing. And I really mean packing. I will post on that later.

Also, if anyone is interested. My mother is having a little get together at my place on the 15th at 6pm for anyone who would like to pop in and say goodbye. Otherwise my friend Becky and I are having a joint going away party later that night as well. Just contact me if you have any questions. Come say goodbye to me!!! I'll be away for 27 months.

Peace,

Josh

Sin impunidad

When I first watched Pamela Yates' documentary, When the Mountains Tremble, I knew next to nothing about Guatemala. Never touched upon in great detail in past history or Spanish courses, the stories of civil war,  and constant violence failed to reach my ears. With this ignorance of mine, the viewing experience of the film became a painful awakening. One scene in which a number of Mayan women wail for the dead in their village will never leave my memory. Women young and old stand there unarmed and weeping, while soldiers stand around them with loaded guns and blank stares. One cannot help but feel discomfort as they view this. I surely felt it. Those women felt it more.

A trip to Guatemala in January 2013 continued to wake me up and gave me a good shake to ensure that I would not just hit the snooze button. While I toured Antigua after days spent in Izabal, I heard the story of two little girls murdered in Guatemala City. Kidnapped, murdered, and bodies in pajamas discarded on the street, I felt that same sobering feeling I had felt before. Child murders happen in the United States, but never does the victim's body get left on the street for the whole world to observe with silent horror. This act of leaving the body on the street not only attempts to diminish the humanity of the victim, but also turns the body into a threat for others. It became an expression of impunity. The murderer leaves the body on the street as a way of saying "Look what I did and look what I will get away with it." A mindset that has come to dominate the Guatemalan culture. 

This mindset has not only permitted senseless violence to dominate, but it has also justified violence against women. Every year, hundreds of women die in Guatemala just for being a woman. Their bodies are treated with no respect as they are raped and disfigured. Their murderers live without consequences and their government fails to promote their well-being. 

Recently, I met a woman from Guatemala living here in the United States. As we talked and met a couple of times, she willingly shared her story of violence. She spoke of how her husband beat her and how she feared for life. After years of maltreatment, she gathered what she could and fled. No longer feeling secure in her homeland, she made her way to the United States to begin a new life. Hearing the hurt in her voice as she shared her story, the issue became even more personal. 

Her story does not differ from the stories of a number of other women, stories that go unheard as impunity dominates their home and country. Their husbands live life without fearing major consequences for beating their wives. Some of the perpetrators do face punishment for their actions, but often women feel too intimated to report it to the police (if one has enough faith that police will actually do something about it).  As the aggressor continues to live in "peace," justice will never reach the victim. 

For years the victims of genocide have sought justice for the crimes done against them. They have called for the arrest and conviction of Ríos Montt, a Guatemalan ex-president and general responsible for the slaughter of 1,700 Ixil Mayans. Despite these efforts, their calls often fell into silence. The government justified the action of Ríos Montt as necessary to establish stability, so no punishment would be required. In other words,  impunity silenced all in the name of preserving the peace. 

2013 has become a year of change and the silence has started to break. Ríos Montt was finally placed on trial for the crime of genocide. With the whole world watching, the painful testimonies of the victims emerged from the shadows of fear. No longer could Montt sit there as a man who did his "job," but a man that ended the lives of innocent people. The court agreed and found him guilty. 

His conviction not only signifies justice for all those hurt and broken, but also shows that impunity has started to weaken. If this once powerful man now has to face the much delayed consequences of his actions, then the rest should as well. Violence in Guatemala, especially that against women, persists just because one get away with it and this needs to stop. The trial of Ríos Montt not only became a critical trial for the victims genocide, but a symbolic trial for the victims of femicide as well. The women of Guatemala need their justice. Impunity has ruled for far too long. 

13 more weeks...

What seems like a long time really isn't... The things I have to do before I reach June 17 are far too many. This not only includes Peace Corps preparation, but also wrapping up my last semester of school and finding the motivation to complete all my projects. You would think that I would feel greatly motivated at this point, but if anything I have been kind of distracted by life in general.

This week I started and finished reading Ishmael Beah's book "A Long Way Gone". That's one thing I had on my list of things to do that I get to check off! And what an emotional book it was... the horrors Ishmael faced were terrible and were experiences that no one should ever experience. He was a child soldier during the civil war in Sierra Leone during the 1990s and was willing to share with us those painful memories and their frightening details. Through his book he not only gives light to those child soldiers but also to the people of Sierra Leone who faced so much suffering. Today Sierra Leone is much different from Ishmael described and I am very humbled that I get to be a part of its continued development after this bloody war. But, the thing I took most from that book is that Ishmael Beah's words truly shows us the resilience of the human spirit. Hope seemed very far away and nonexistent, but he never gave up. 

On the brighter side, today I finished all the necessary medical appointments before I leave, which means I can cross a couple more things off of my to-do list! I am happy that is all done. Nothing makes me more nervous than a doctor's office.


Peace,

Josh

P.S. If anyone knows of any good resources for an English teacher, please let me know!

A New Beginning

Well, I am back to blogging everyone. My travel blogging in Spain came to an abrupt stop last March, but I plan to use this blog to continue onto my next journey.

This past Tuesday (Feb 26) I received my invitation from the Peace Corps to serve as a Secondary Education English Teacher in Sierra Leone. I find it hard to believe that this moment is finally here. I've been wanting to do this since high school, so the fact that I'll be leaving this June for Sierra Leone blows me away.

I feel so blessed with this opportunity. Sure, living life will be a lot different in my new location, but I'm excited for this change. I am excited for the challenge. But the thing I am most excited for is to meet the people I will be living and working with. I've already started searching the web and reading books to get myself acquainted with this country I will soon call home. 

At this moment I can only feel excitement. I could be nervous about leaving home for two years and moving into unknown territory, but rather than feeling apprehension, I find myself energized and ready for a new adventure.  

I should note that my destination may have limited internet connection, so my extent of blogging about my experience may be limited to the months before departure. As the months pass by, please lookout for other blog posts detailing my preparation (if interested). 

Also, to anyone in the teaching profession or working towards a teaching degree: I need your help. If anyone would like to give me a crash course on lesson planning or other teaching tips that would be much appreciated. Or if anyone could give me some pointers on where I could find a good English grammar book or text book, that would also be greatly appreciated. 

Peace out,

Josh