Third Goal

A Protracted Expanse of Ocean

Sometimes I feel that being a Peace Corps Volunteer feels as if I am hand-delivering piles of bricks across a muddy riverbed to provide a community with the means to build. It’s as if I am carrying the weight on my shoulders through a thick mud. To me, this mud I must trod through everyday represents the all-encompassing and foreign culture of the Philippines. As a Peace Corps Volunteer working at the community-level, I carry my load brick by brick. Over time I can see the buildings get...

The Bangka

A bangka is a Filipino boat made out of wood and bamboo. As we noisely motor to one of the 7,107 island of the Philippines, the Filipino man navigates the boat with his bamboo pole.

Ain't No River Wide Enough

2010 TEFL Academy in Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria. The newest PCVs were teaching a class of 3rd Graders "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" for a performance later that week.

Snowing in the Philippines

My students always ask me what snow is like, as they have never experienced a temperature less than 70 degrees farenheit. For Christmas, I taught my students how to make snowflakes out of white paper. They had a great time cutting out their own unique designs. Then we all threw them up into the air, making it snow in the Philippines for the first time!

Oh No You Didn't...

In training, my host family got a new kitten who decided she was the new dog.

Anne Frank: Jewish by Tribe

Nativity Scene at Chikangawa

Years later, no participant will claim this to be their idea.  We wrote the character names on little pieces of paper (Jesus, Mary, wise man #1, angel #1, etc) placed the papers in a hat and drew rolls.  Each of us was allotted 15 minutes or so to put together a costume before making this photo.

High on Life

Culturally "inappropriate" in the spring

High on Life

PCVs having fun

Bright and Cheerful

Adorable third graders waiting for a photo opp (and any excuse to be distracted from their lessons)