So how has life been since my last
post?
A mile a minute and full of packing and
goodbyes. I spent a couple of weeks working as staff at Shadowcliff
in Colorado, where I got my last taste of snow and ice until 2014. I
have many good friends there to thank for a killer experience there
that really helped me gear up for the Peace Corps.
But I think that Saturday sums up life
in my last week here in the USA. I stumbled out of bed around 9:00, still
tired from Tuesday's 20-mile run in the mountains, 22-hour train
ride, writing more e-mails than ever before, and biking around the
city sharing good times with friends and family. But there wasn't a
moment to spare. I had hardly started packing, and had also planned a
going-away party at the lake. I have my family to thank for pulling
it all off. Miraculously, we worked together making a small feast, I got all of my shopping finished and things assembled some five
hours later.
Of course, it wouldn't have been a real party
without all of the fantastic family and friends who showed up! It was
a real treat to see you guys on my last day in Chicago. Thank you for
your words of love and encouragement! And your assistance in our attempts to
fend off the feral ducks and newlyweds...
But the evening of fun led to a night of agonizing debate. What to take with? Here are two questions that I tussled with for a good part of the night, as I searched for a certain important document that went missing (found at 4 AM!).
#1: Paints, or No Paints?
Every once in a blue moon, I paint. I
did 2.5 paintings last year. But the optimist in me thinks that I'll
have lots of time and creative energy to paint in Burkina Faso
dilemma. Do I overrule the optimist?
Setting the tone for the night, I
settled on a compromise. No acrylics. No fancy tube water colors.
Just ink, a watercolor palette (like the one you might have used as a
kid, but a cut fancier). I also have plenty of sketchbooks, pencils
and pens, with some to spare. Pen and pencil is my bread and butter,
even if coloring sketches in on the computer involves some
creativity while in Africa, it's still what I'm most likely to do.
But perhaps most importantly, I'm excited to see what Burkina Faso
offers to the aspiring amateur artist. I'm all for experimenting with
new mediums. We'll see what comes up!
#2: How many books?
Some people have e-readers, and think
that anything involving paper is a barbaric relic of the past. I tend
to think this is true of boring stuff: academic papers, old tax
returns and bills. But writing that is important enough to be a part
of my 74 pounds of luggage (your final total here) has to have
some heft to it. What was perhaps
most important was my photo album and a set of family memoirs. People
in Burkina Faso are very close to their families, and whenever I
introduce myself to host families, I will be bringing more than
myself along. These pictures and stories will help me tell where I
come from, and in a small part, transport my family that a far corner
of the world. I think it will be difficult, to relate to people who
have not traveled far from home as a person from thousands of miles
away, but this will be well worth the extra weight.
I also
started a care package to myself, which includes two things so far:
Switch: How to Change when Change is Hard.,
and selected letters that I've received over the years. Switch
is one of the most inspirational and practical books that I've read,
and explains concisely why people change, and what facilitates that.
It is filled with real-life examples, many related to development,
health and organizational change, all stories that I think will be
relatable in some way to what I'm about to experience. As for the
letters... I'm hoping that they'll arrive just as I'm hitting a low
point in the culture-shock roller coaster. The care, and words of
kindness that I have received from you all (especially my sister
Margaret, and Grandma Marge) of the years is also inspiring, and I
hope I can write two letters for every one I get in the mail. I will
miss you. But connection is the blood that keeps us moving. If
there's one lesson that the past year has taught me, it's that.
Related
to that, I have an address! It is:
Ethan
Heppner, PCT
s/c
Corps de la Paix
01
B.P. 6031
Ouagadougou
01, Burkina Faso
My
e-mail, in case you don't have it, is: heppnere@gmail.com
My
Skype: zero.eth
Please feel welcome to add me!
This
leads me to another point: the purpose of this blog. I intend to
write half-stories. This means that I will intentionally obscure
details, leave out critical pieces of information, and fudge facts
(OK, I'm kidding here-- no untruths). Why?
It's
too easy to have a false connection with people. You read their
blogs, you have all of their stories, and you pass them on. You know
an awkward amount about other people's lives. You write a “how are
you doing?” e-mail, or give them a call, but you know perfectly
well how they're doing. I hope to save you this confusion. So, you'll
have an incomplete story, perhaps a couple of cliffhangers. You'll
have to talk to me personally to get the rest (or talk to someone who
did). E-mail me. Set up a Skype date. I'll be surprisingly accessible. I ought to have internet
access at least once per week during staging, likely more often
afterwards, since I'll be teaching IT in a country where internet
access is rapidly expanding. And whether you are a close relative or
friend, or an “FPCV” checking out the story of some current
Burkina Faso volunteer, I do intend to get back to you, as my
internet access and level of energy permit.
One last shout-out! The day that I leave for Burkina Faso (tomorrow), my Mom and Uncle Tom also depart for Ireland to do an incredible bike trip. I'm so excited for them!
OK,
that's enough for now. No dramatic exit, but this will be my last post in the United
States. I'll catch you on the flipside, where yes, the oeuvres will
continue to saute.
A la
prochaine: (ETA 1-2 weeks): Post on Stage, Arrival and Training!
ETH
