Marks.

The early morning sun cast its celestial rays over the endless expanse of mismatched, corrugated, tin roofs. As I lifted off the ground with my dog safely tucked in the compartment below me, I soaked it all in for the very last time...one last glimpse of this significant country and its people that has left an indelible mark on my soul as a Peace Corps Volunteer. I breathed it all in, and said my final farewell.

Days earlier I had said farewell to my community of Copey. It was there that I spent two years and made a mark - or a dent, as least, I had hoped. Afterall, that's why we embark on such adventures, right? - to somehow make a mark, and of course, marks are made on us...the place and the people always ends up leaving a deeper mark on us. These marks are often hard to conceptualize, ambiguous and hard to see. Rather, I think they are more felt. When I went house to house to the important people in my community to say farewell and enjoy our last cafecitos together, I knew by the tears, the sentiments spoken, the comfortable connections, the open invitations for return, that marks has been made.

As I look back on this freshly completed experience, I wonder if I was successful? Is this the point of Peace Corps? To be successful? Or to fulfill the 27-months of service to JFK's liking? Well, perhaps. But I know that I can say that I leave this experience behind (while taking it much of with me, of course) with 100% satisfaction and have no regrets. And while it was largely about the work and the collaboration on projects, it was most importantly for me about the relationships formed. I will never forget the extended embrace of the father of one family I became close with. How his love for me - a mere stranger just two years earlier - exuded from his arms as we said a tearful goodbye. And the mother. And their son. It still makes me incredibly sad......over a month of being back home.

Now I move forward and on from this experience, carrying with me the important provisions - changed, fearless, stronger, zero regrets. Where I will go, I don't yet know. Much like two years and three months ago, I once again step into terra incognita. And I'm pretty darn sure I can face anything that will come my way, just a little bit stronger...

Thanks for following along and stopping by my journey, readers!!!