The "Invitation" Post

Yesterday, like any other day, I had a plan. I was going to get off work around 2:00 PM, go for my four mile run, get cleaned up, and head for Birmingham for a Peace Corps recruitment event. I was certain the event started at 7:00 PM so I had plenty of time. Around mile 3 I started thinking, "Wow, it's odd for PC to have an event that only lasts an hour". So, still going full speed, I pulled up the e-mail on my phone. 6:00... it said 6:00 PM was the beginning time of the event. I was about a mile from my car and started panicking.

You see, Emily had called earlier last week and asked me to say a few words about my seamless application process thus far, in order to give new applicants hope. I also had a sneaking suspicion that I might get my invite that night. It struck me that Emily would want to make sure that I was at an event, even after I had RSVPd, so I did some research. I posed the question on the Future Peace Corps Volunteer's Facebook page, "Is it possible to get your invitation in person at Peace Corps event?" A few people responded, saying yes but not enough to truly convince me that it was a possibility so I shrugged it off, not wanting to get too excited. I busted through the final mile of my run with the thought of missing my invitation moment fresh in my brain.

I ran home cleaned up as best I could after a killer four mile run and jumped in the car to Birmingham. Everything was going great. I was going to make it to Birmingham in record time. I pulled up to the sketchiest Mexican restaurant I had ever encountered in my life, walked in and it was empty. I almost cried, my heart sank to the pit of my stomach. You remember that comparison I made between the Peace Corps and your high school crush. It happened again. Only this time, the feeling was like when you see your crush with another girl (or guy). Absolutely devastating. I asked the hostess if she knew anything about a Peace Corps group and she shook her head no. Then she piped up, "There hasn't been a large group in here all night." Wait.. is this the wrong place. I looked down at my phone and sure enough it had sent me to Cantina Mexican Grill on the OTHER SIDE of Birmingham. I sprinted to my car and sped to downtown Birmingham to Cantina Tortilla, turns out it was the Mexican place around the corner from my rock climbing gym. Never had I been more irritated with Birmingham's games. I walked in and Emily beamed with delight. She mouthed, "Thank God!" That's when I knew something was weird. It was as if the success of the whole gathering depended upon my arrival.

Emily got up to speak after a member of the GBRPCV (Greater Birmingham Return Peace Corps Volunteers). She had a UPS package in her hands but once again, I shrugged it off. She called myself and a older woman named Mary up to the front. She wanted to demonstrate the difference in Peace Corps timelines. Now, if you've been following me and know anything about the process, you know that I have had a seamless application. It had taken me two months to get where it takes a whole year for most people. Emily looked at us and said, "I have lured you up here under false pretences". That's when I knew that UPS package had our invitations.


Getting my invitation the "old-fashioned" way!
As you can see, I look rough from the nights events.

My knees buckled while so many thoughts racing through my mind. What if it's not Africa? What if it's October? What if it's January? What if they changed my position? Oh my God, it's in my hands. And finally, it has only taken me two months I don't deserve this. The lady beside me, Mary, had waited a year and a half for her invitation. I felt so wrong to have had virtually no wait time. I thought two months was torture but this lady stuck it out for a year and a half AND SHE WAS 60! We both opened our invitations and the first words I read... "Peace Corps invites you to begin training in Lesotho". And I cried. Yes, I cried in a room full of strangers. But each and every one of those strangers understood why I was crying.

It was a perfect night to memorialize the day I was invited to serve with the United States Peace Corps. I have so many emotions I'm still trying to sort out and I'm overwhelmed with the amount of stuff I have to do but I have great family and friends who I know will help me every step of the way. I will write a post next week about the specifics of my assignments and Lesotho in general