Little Victories

Even on the rough days or slow weeks here, something happens or something is said every single day that just reconfirms why I’m here and that I’m meant to be here (I’ve started journaling these things which I call my little victories- things that just brighten my day and give me a sense of purpose). Last week was our site announcement week and so everyone was on edge and looking forward to Friday so we would find out where we would be spending our two years and we were all giddy to find out. This week though we all kind of hit our slump and for some reason a lot of us have gotten bed bugs or fleas and a pesky cold has hit many of us (neither of which has affected me yet *knock on wood) but still, I know in my experience this week at times was a drag.

Earlier this week we talked in one of our sessions about ways once we can get to our site that can make our experience better and less lonely and one of the big things we hit on was integration. Basically it could be summarized in that we need to get to know the people in our community and make connections in any way we can whether that be befriending the person we get coffee from or regularly going to the market to interact with people (which disclaimer, at times seems super intimidating to me because I can still barely going to our local episeraries without stumbling on my Malagasy so going to site and being on my own can seem like a goliath of a transition sometimes). However, I got a glimpse firsthand of what integration could look like this week and for me it was one of my “little victories” (LV).

On Thursdays we go to the Peace Corps Training Center all day until 5 instead of our regular session spots and then going home for lunch. Thursdays for me are always a nice little escape because we also don’t have language class and so it’s like a little brain break. Well this Thursday one of our sessions got cancelled and so we had an extra couple hours at the end of the day and a group decided to play volleyball and a bunch of the guys that work at the PCTC came and played as well. It was super fun and those extra endorphins gave me a nice little boost. The guys we were playing with were all great and were asking me about how I was liking Madagascar and just making nice little small talk anytime I was out on a sub. One time too I was just juggling with the extra ball and the other sub came and started juggling with me too and little things like that just always make me feel more and more like I’m fitting in and making a friend. However my LV showed up the next day when I was walking to one of my sessions. It’s normal in most places when walking down the street to say hello to most people you pass. The Malagasy are super friendly and it’s just a sign of respect. I don’t know them but it’s just kind of what you do. This day however, as I was approaching a group of around 5-6 men I was planning on just slipping by them. They were all talking and I just didn’t feel like saying hi. But then once I got closer I realized I recognized most of them. They were many of the guys playing volleyball with me the day before! Their faces also lit up in recognition and we exchanged a cheerful greeting. I thought back to our integration session and I realized how important these little friendships are going to be during my service. It feels really good to feel a part of a community and seeing these guys around town these past couple days has been a nice reminder that when I take the time to get to know people it personalizes my interactions so instead of seeing a daunting group of unknown men, instead I see friends. So my little victory was realizing I can integrate into my community and that it’s not as scary as it might seem at times.