At Home

Greetings from stateside! Our last day in Ukraine was May 1, and was preceded by several weeks of farewell gatherings and events. We taught our last classes, gave our final final exams, and said goodbye to fellow Peace Corps volunteers, to students and co-teachers, to dear host families, to special friends, and officially to the Peace Corps. We were feted at a memorable afternoon gathering at Peter's university at which more than 80 students came to say goodbye and present gifts. This was followed by a lunch with the 15 teachers and administrators we'd worked with, and included the tradition of going around the table to offer eloquent, sometimes tearful, toasts. We were honored and touched. Our last visits with our two host families were bittersweet and wonderful. When we got to the 8:30 pm train that would take us away from our city for the last time, a dozen locals came to see us off, including regulars from our English club, members of our extended host family, and co-teachers and their families who've become special friends. We left with feelings of sadness and satisfaction, and many connections that we intend to maintain across the miles. Our wonderful and talented 19-year-old Russian tutor, who has never been on an airplane before, will be coming here to spend the summer with us. Especially since she was so helpful to us, we are excited to show her our neck of the woods here, and help her experience much of what the US has to offer. In a way, our Peace Corps service continues.