Taipei Dispatch

The flight from Manila to Taipei was short and sweet. Leaving the country had fewer glitches than expected, yet more than appreciated (like the bank who's hours are from 9oo-1330; how very obvious they are). My Manila days were relatively uneventful; a few last minute visits, purchases, affordable movies, and schwarma plates. The days of cheap Mediterranean food have come to a close.

My intention in delaying departure by two weeks was to spend time decompressing, reflecting, and resorting my thoughts before landing on American soil. I've had a hard time deciding if or not my intentions were fully met. Yes, I was able to relax and reflect, in a manner of speaking, but not to the extent planned. Life, it would seem, occurs too fast to adequately process any given experience before flinging the next upon us. We are effectively unable to remove ourselves from the flow of events and view them, understand them, or catalogue them with any pretense of objectivity. Every moment is colored by every moment that follows; coming to any comprehensive conclusions about experience is little more than hyperbole.

This is not to say that one cannot speak about events in their life and experience without meaning or import. Experience simply cannot be understood in a vacuum, sans the context provided by what occured before and after any given moment. My thoughts on the Peace Corps will be affected by these few days in Taiwan, by my emotions the moment I step from the plane in Seattle, and by every moment thereafter (as those moments will in turn be affected by the others that will hopefully follow).

I'm glad that the decision to delay departure from the Philippines was made. For many reasons, most of which I am unable to articulate, returning state-side directly would have been too shocking, too jarring. Being away from home forced me to consider long and hard what it is about America I love, what it is I distrust; my conclusions about those catagories are less important than the overpowering sense that America is home. And yet the place I am most called to be had to wait, for just a little while, before accepting my offer of return. If or not the wait has better prepared me for all that will come, I do not know, but it may soften the blow.

Taipei is a very metropolitan city. This morning it's off to the National Palace Museum. Tomorrow, something else.

The Home Stretch

After a week out, I'm in. Fresh off the boat. During our mini-vacation a number of previously stated goals were met: 1. read, 2. write, 3. beer. The only thing missing was a hammock; this was quickly replaced by running around Siquijor Island for a week on little pseudo-motorcycles. Driving a motor around, even a pseudo-one, imparts a very distinct sense of freedom; one could argue that you are most free when unencumbered by anything but your feet. Granted: you may be freer, but not as fast.

Strangely enough, I don't feel much like vacationing at the moment. The effort of finding places to stay, transportation, food, and fumbling around in Tagalog have worn me out (and I wasn't even alone in the Process!). It amazes me that, after two or more years in the corps, volunteers have the energy to travel out their readjustment allowance. If I hadn't cultivated a desire to return home and renew the connections therein, perhaps further travel would not seem such a strange desire. The thought of continuing elsewhere than homeward holds little appeal at present.

All that obligation requires of me is to pack my bags, mail a package, and pay the man my terminal fee. Not surprisingly, at this point, that's about all the effort I can muster.

The freshest news state-side is that a job possibility rests on the horizon. The offer remains undefined; at the very least I'll have something to do right away, at the most the position will become full time. This works well on all fronts. I had planned to sign up with a temp agency but it would seem that that step is no longer necessary, at least right away. More on this at a later date.

What's in Store

As the past few weeks have been more than a little insane I have neglected, sometimes consciously, sometimes not, to lay out my plans. This is due in part to the fact that a dirth of information made plans difficult to make, but also that a disinclination to "figure things out" weighed me down. It seems that now would be a good time to rectify this situation. Clairity is flowing at the moment.

Today I will purchase my ticket home; there will be a short stopover in Taipei to visit a former volunteer studying Chinese there - it will be nice to drop by and see her. March 31st I'll fly from Manila and arrive in Seattle on April 6th. Almost two weeks of unstructured time remain to be spent in the Philippines; that space is slowly taking form. With a few other recently COSed volunteers I will fly to Dumagete City on Negros, visit Siquijor and perhaps Siragao for a brief tour of the southern Visayas/Northern Mindanao. The irony that I lived in an island nation, yet rarely seeing a beach, will be corrected in the next two weeks. Hammocks, books, writing, and cold beer are my only priorities at the moment.

After arriving in Seattle Kari Ann and I will house sit for almost two months. During that time I plan to change residency from Wisconsin to Washington (still eating cheese), look for jobs and housing, and try to adjust to life - or at least learn to live with it. There should be an excursion to Ontario for canoeing in early June. Then comes full fledged Midwest time. Kenosha, Chicago, Holcombe, the Twin Cities will all pass under my feet until sometime in September when mountains, fall micro-brews, and possibly work pulls westward once again. After September things get a little hazy, but this suits me just fine. At this point I need few definites; they will come in time.

I feel good about these plans; solid enough for direction, flexible enough for change.

The Last Straw

In the waning moments on this last day of service my "description of service" sees completion. Generally I don't procrastinate; in this case I have. The thought of compressing two years of experience - frustration, elation, success, failure, memories, hopes, fears, and rice - into a one page "DOS" drained any energy available for such a task.

There are several reasons for this aversion: 1. we are expected to brag about our accomplishments, 2. it will serve as the only official record of my service retained by the Peace Corps, ad infinitum, and 3. it is the final, incontrovertible, symbol of the end. The end here is more obvious than it was in the goodbye's to the people with whom I have lived and worked for the past two years - the possibility of future contact and the ability to recall and relive lubricates our exit. With the DOS, we write it, have it signed, and the deed is done.

A few moments from now I will cease to be a Peace Corps Volunteer. It's a little like graduating from college or high school, but more final. At this time a gulf of culture and distance a thousand miles wide breaks into a great yawn, even as the future opens up ahead- the sense of vertigo and excitement at the unknown is overwhelming, while nostalgia and sadness for what remains so close intermingle.

And so, my DOS is complete. Every dry, boring, sterile sentence. Nothing of my time is contained within these words; time which these sentences are superficially intended to encompass. I suppose that ultimately this is true for any experience - how can one summarize or edit their moments into a format that does justice to what has occurred? They can't. Thankfully through this process, meaning the whole nine yards, I have learned the value of remembering and of being thankful for what is happening (not only what has passed). All that remains is to bring this home.

My service, in a nutshell:

After a competitive application process stressing applicant skills, adaptability and cross-cultural sensitivity, Peter Elling began Peace Corps training on February 1st, 2003 at Dumadag Farm, Tagbilaran, Bohol and completed a 9 week training program. Trainees in Mr. Elling's sector, Community-based Conservation of Important Biodiversity Areas (CCIBA), received 124 hours of technical training, 104 hours of language training, 7.5 hours of formal cultural sessions, 22 hours of health and personal management training, and 16 hours devoted to safety and security issues. At the end of his training period, Mr. Elling tested at the Intermediate-High level of language functionality in Ilocano.

Peter Elling was enrolled in the Peace Corps on April 5th, 2003. He was assigned to the Provincial Tourism Office (PTO) in Bayombong, Nueva Vizcaya during his service in the Philippines. During his tenure as a PCV, Mr. Elling implemented his own projects in addition to assisting other PCV projects, resulting in a varied volunteer experience.

Mr. Elling offered his skill as an environmental educator during environmental education training/material development sessions with a local NGO (Sang-at Salug Outdoor Club), as well as during two (2) week long youth camp experiences; one occurring in Kadaclan, Mt. Province, and the other in Capisaan, Nueva Vizcaya. Both elementary and high school students attended these camps. Mr. Elling assisted a local NGO (FRENDS) in the procurement of teaching tools and techniques to aid in their watershed-conservation/education efforts; one such watershed management training was presented in Paitan, Bayombong. Mr. Elling guided the PTO in the development of a Project Development and Management training offered to local residents and elected officials of Bayombong.

Mr. Elling instructed local community members how to design, build, and use wood-fired clay ovens. Two such ovens were constructed in Bayombong; two others in St. Fe, Nueva Vizcaya. The ovens in St. Fe were integrated into the schools' curriculum, allowing the 3rd and 4th year high-school students to learn the basics of bread production. Several designs using local materials were utilized in the construction of these ovens; three were built with a simple down draft design ranging 16"-28" in inner diameter, and one with a cross-draft design with an inner diameter of 36".

Mr. Elling taught the basics of theatre, staging, and drama for a high school dance troupe located in St. Fe, Nueva Vizcaya. The dancers have since competed in several local competitions and performed on numerous occasions locally; this program was part of a cultural preservation effort coordinated by the school (the Kalahan Education Foundation) and the local government. Optional basic music appreciation sessions were offered wherein Mr. Elling introduced interested students to jazz, symphonic music, and musical theatre.

Mr. Elling assisted four schools (three high schools and one elementary school) in the painting of large political world maps, equipping local teachers to use these maps throughout their curriculum. Mr. Elling supervised 13-18 year old students as they drew, painted, and labeled the maps in prominent areas of their schools. With Peter's assistance three of these schools were connected with local and international book donating agencies; the schools received textbooks and other teaching materials intended for teacher use while writing their lesson plans.

Pursuant to Section 5(f) of the Peace Corps Act, 22 U.S.C. 2504(f) as amended, any former volunteer employed by the United States Government following his/her Peace Corps Volunteer service is entitled to have any period of satisfactory Peace Corps Volunteer service credited for purposes of retirement, seniority, reduction in force, leave and other privileges based on length of Government service. Peace Corps service shall not be credited toward completion of the probationary or trial period or completion of any service requirement for career appointment.

This is to certify in accordance with Executive Order No. 1103 of April 10, 1963, that Peter Elling served satisfactorily as a Peace Corps Volunteer. His service ended on March 16th, 2005. He is therefore eligible to be appointed as a career-conditional employee in the competitive civil service on a non-competitive basis. This benefit under the Executive Order entitlement extends for a period of one year, except that the employing agency may extend the period for up to three years for a former Volunteer who enters military service, pursues studies at a recognized institution of higher learning or engages in other activities which in the view of the appointing authority warrants extension of the period.

The End.