One Question, Many Answers

I have been having variations on one conversation for some time now.  When a person discovers that I am going to Guatemala with the Peace Corps, I often end up getting the question, "Why are you going?"  I think I respond in many ways, depending on my state of mind at the time.  Here is a sampling:

Why are you going?

I aspire to be a World Citizen.  The more I can experience the world, the better I am able to try on new perspectives and lenses in order to see differently than might come naturally to a middle class white U.S. citizen.  

Why are you going?

I don't want to spend all of my 20s sitting behind a desk.  I've always loved being out of doors and this is a chance to do it for most of two years.  

Why are you going?


I'm not ready for grad school, but I'm ready for a change.

Why are you going?

Those of us in the U.S. often take for granted all that we have.  We may or may not pay attention to our leaders, to the actions our government and businesses take.  But those in the rest of the world pay attention.  What happens inside the U.S. disproportionally affects things outside the U.S. strictly because our country is  a political and economic heavy weight.  Is that changing?  Maybe.  Maybe not.  But it's still my home, and sometimes the best way to understand where you come from is to go somewhere else for awhile.

Why are you going?

I want to be bilingual.  Or trilingual, for that matter.  

Why are you going?

Well, it's guaranteed to be an adventure... with no marriage and no mortgage, now's the time that makes sense.  (This is in no way to say that those of you with one or both of the two "m"'s listed above should be deterred from having adventures of your own.)

Why are you going?

Boy, that's sure the question that keeps me up at night.

Why are you going?

Because I strive to live a life of service and simplicity.  I feel I have been given many blessings in life and I might as well see whether I can share those in some way.  I want to give back somehow.  Yes, I can, should, and will do that here in the U.S... there is no need to go abroad to serve.  But the Peace Corps has three stated goals:

1. Helping the people of interested countries in meeting their need for trained men and women.
2. Helping promote a better understanding of Americans on the part of the peoples served.
3. Helping promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of Americans.     (source)

...and I support those goals.  In our media age, there still isn't anything like actually knowing a person from a country to make you see it with a more human eye.  To realize that a country is more than its government; it is also its people.  Are there more efficient ways to cause development?  Is this the best model to lift people out of poverty?  Probably, and probably not.  But: 

"In 1961, President John F. Kennedy established the Peace Corps to promote world peace and friendship."  (source)

That's aiming for the stars, but it's also something I can get behind.  

Why are you going?

Ask me again in six months.  I bet I'll have discovered some new reasons by then.