With Every Passing Day...: Out of Training at Last!

After 9 weeks of intensive “Phase I” Training in “training villages” in Berea District, 3 months of “Phase II” preliminary integration at our new “sites” (ie. villages) across Lesotho, and one more week of follow-up “Phase III” Training in Berea… We are officially finished with Peace Corps Training!

We have been shaped, molded, and minted by the United States Peace Corps. We have been taught a surprising amount of Sesotho and lectured at for endless hours. We’ve each had TWO host families, TWO villages, and taught at THREE schools. We can tell you all about the merits of a thorough “community needs assessment,” the dangers of unsustainable development interventions, and the realities of HIV/AIDS stigmatization in Lesotho. We have been tested and tried. We’ve lived in places ranging from semi-urban to remote mountain villages. We have witnessed the challenges our students face, and been forced to use Sesotho to wiggle our way out of tough situations. We’ve been stranded in village by flooded bridges, lived in houses that are bed-bug ridden or mouse infested, and in one extreme case, had the roof blown off the house. We’ve experienced extreme joy, and desperate loneliness. And after it all, the only thing that I’m certain of is that I still have a LOT to learn. This is just the beginning of an amazing adventure! :)

Training has been an awesome ride! While I’m thankful training is finally behind me, I’m even more thankful for the amazing Peace Corps Lesotho Staff that helped prepare us for the inevitable challenges, and integrated us into their PCV family. They are truly special people. It was also wonderful to see my fellow PCV trainees during our last week of “Phase III” training. Being together again after the successes and challenges of our initial 3 months at site was obviously an emotional roller coaster of sorts… But we were all thankful for the chance to debrief, and get reenergized to face the next two years. For me, it was important, to once again be reminded, that I really do have an amazing support system here, in country. And while I may sometimes feel “alone” in Ha Selomo, a sympathetic ear or wise words of advice are never more than a frantic text, or a quick email away. This is definitely not a journey any of us are facing alone.

On our last day of training, PC took us over the border to Ladybrand, South Africa to celebrate with an AMAZING lunch! As luck would have it, the restaurant also had a playground… And for that moment, we might as well have been kids again! For most of us, our first vacation (and freedom from the travel restrictions placed on trainees) was only a few hours away… The joy and relief was evident on all our faces!