Elections Coming in Guinea

Like a weight on my shoulders, Guinea, which has been nicknamed the ‘forgotten country,’ has taken the opposite role in my life, as the ‘unforgettable country.’ Even less than a year ago, I was an eager member of G-18, gearing up for a two year service, studying forgotten math techniques and technical French vocabulary with Monsieur Diallo to prepare for two years teaching high school math in Yende Milimou.

It is hard to go back to the place I was in last November, in Tubaniso, Mali, heart-broken, destructive, and grieving. Maybe my quick decision to come to Peru was an attempt to run as far away from the source of my troubles as possible. I couldn’t face a transfer, that would have been similar but not the same. I couldn’t face home which I’d only just left. So I came to Peru and I found a life here. I learned Spanish. I learned how to survive in a new foreign culture. I got my life together, made new decisions and today I am happy and healthy.

So why can’t I put Guinea behind me? With exciting news of a nation on the verge of their first set of democratic elections and Peace Corps making plans to re-instate the Guinea program, calling in Peace Corps Response Volunteers and Re-instatements from COSers like me, suddenly my stomach seems all twisted upside down and around. The wound re-opens and the old emotions just spill out. I can feel the call of Africa as if it's a love of my life.

So what does a person do? What do you do when the thing that broke your heart invites you back into its life?

Please remember to help Guinea by following these June 27^th elections and praying for this unforgettable place at the edge of the world.