I was itching to get out and do something different

I have always had the desire to help others. At the core of every human being is a want to lend a hand to those living lives less fortunate than their own. Whether or not a person has the capacity to recognize the "humanitarian" in their being rests greatly in life experience and circumstance. I feel blessed to have had the necessary shifts in my life that have given me the chance to become acquainted with this part of myself.

Having just graduated college, I was itching to get out and do something different; to experience the world and strengthen my character. After spending some time researching different volunteer opportunities, I came across the IICD website. Immediately, I decided to contact the institution and learn more. After corresponding with an IICD Massachusetts director, and following this correspondence with a visit to "The Mountain", I was fairly confident that I had found my place; that through this program I would find the greater "me" that'd I'd been looking for, that I would be able to impact a few people by starting on this new and different journey, and that I would finally be able to explore those untouched facets of my soul that had always told me to use my heart and head to do better for and by others. 24 hours of contemplation later, I had made my decision to drastically transform my reality. Africa, here I come!

I arrived in Massachusetts on January 31st after a 9 hour drive from my hometown in Virginia. I parked my car at the bottom of the long mountain and hopped into the red Explorer waiting for me. In my mind I thought, "here goes nothing, the start of a new adventure."
Although I have only been on the mountain for 5 days, I can say that I'm excited for the next 6 months and for what the future has in store. This excitement is the result of the limited but full experiences I've had thus far.
This past week has been exciting! I have gotten the chance to meet 15 of the 17 members of my "February Africa Team". Together, we are quite the cultural bunch; most of us from different pockets of the globe, so willing to learn from one another. While there may be minor language difficulties from time to time, there is a much deeper understanding vibrating through our communication; that we are here for a common goal, that by coming here we have all, in some way, changed our realities, and that together we will become better and have a small part in making the world better because of the events that will take place in the next 14 months.

The days have been filled with invaluable information about the organization, about the great people who make the organization possible, and the programs that have been implemented in Africa in order to make a better and brighter future for those people who we will soon be introduced to; those people who, although we are working to help, will ultimately prove to help us in an even greater way.

I already feel a sense of comfort that only comes from being in place where you are embraced; the type of comfort that reminds you that home is relative.