First Loss and the End of Training

Well I am sorry to say that we have had our first loss from our stage. It was pretty impressive that we made it this far before losing one and a lot of us were betting we would make it to swear-in before our first loss. Unfortunately, yesterday Dave decided he’d had enough, packed his bags and left for Conakry without a real goodbye (not really his choice, it’s Peace Corps policy to get you out ASAP when you decide it’s time to go). We are all very sad and will miss Dave a lot!! Keep in touch dude and eat that burrito for me (don’t forget the sour cream)!!

At the same time, all of us are packing for our departure to Conakry on Wednesday for swear-in. I can’t believe training is over but I am definitely glad to be moving on to the next phase of my service.

Wednesday we have our farewell ceremony here in Forecariah with our host families and the local officials. Right after the ceremony we board the bus (a new bus, it’s pretty sweet!) and head off for Conakry. I’m not going to lie, I will probably cry a little bit as we pull away, as I have become rather close with my family here and will miss them a lot.

Friday we have swear-in in Conakry and I am giving the French speech in Dave’s stead. That night we are going to have a theme party: movie characters/celebrities. I am going as Victoria Beckham in a paired effort with Scott, who is going as David Beckham. There will be many amusing pictures to be had, I am sure.

After four nights at the Peace Corps Frat House we will all head to our regional capitals on Sunday which for me is Boke. Then we will have a couple of days to shop and whatnot and then we will start to be installed at our sites on Tuesday or Wednesday. It’s very exciting and nerve wracking.

And kinda depressing. We have all made very good friends here and in general are a close-knit group. The fact that we all have shared interests and goals and are in this very unique situation has brought many of us closer to others than we had anticipated. I certainly wasn’t expecting to get so close to some people so fast and I will miss them terribly when we are no longer together. As of now, my closest friends have a different regional capital than I do (though Ian, John and I will assess the feasibility of switching if it turns out it’s easier to go to Fouta than Basse Cote), so I will not be seeing them for a long time. I guess that means frequent hikes to my reseau (cell service) spot.

Today Scott, Jake, Juliann, Caitlin and I went to go see the mother of the little girl who died and give her some money (culturally appropriate in Guinea when someone dies). She still looks miserable (with good reason) and the look on her face whenever I see her breaks my heart. We sat with her for a few minutes and watched a bright green chameleon amble by across the ground. Today my aunt told me that they thought the little girl died of Typhoid Fever. This is an all-too-common occurrence in Guinea and I know this will only be the first of many deaths I will experience during my service. Somehow that thought doesn’t really take the edge off.

Tonight as I took my bucket bath I couldn’t help but think that tomorrow will be the last one I take at my family’s house. Today my complet came back from the tailor and it is pretty. My family laughed and applauded as I strutted around the porch and modeled it for them. Oumou is going to braid my hair tomorrow and I will look truly Guinean for the goodbye ceremony. The piece of basin fabric (very expensive here) that my mama gave the tailor for the accent on my complet works really nicely and every time I look at it I will think of her and what a great cook she is. My mama is a very stern woman who rarely smiles so in my time here I have made a point to be so silly to make her break into smiles. Deep down I know she thinks I am funny and has been happy to have me here and I am so grateful for all her hospitality and sacrifice while I have been here. Tomorrow I think I will buy her a chicken to say thank you.