My ethnicity had shaped my Peace Corps experience more than I ever thought it would.

I have been living as a vegetarian for 10 years now. I decided to make the switch after suffering from severe migraines. It has become a part of who I am and I totally feared coming to Indonesia thinking I would have to eat meat.

“How do you know you’ll make it to two years?” he asked.

I recently read a book entitled “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time” by Mark Haddon.  At one point, the protagonist states that “…because there is something they can’t see, people think it has to be special…like the dark side of the moon, or the other side of the black hole.” 

One of the goals of Peace Corps service is to promote a better understanding of Americans on the part of the peoples served.

My World Map Project was a little unexpected, but greatly enjoyable. I think that it perfectly summarized my first months here at my site in West Java in that the process of service may be hectic but the product can be unexpected and beautiful. 

I grew up in a very small, conservative, farming town called Summerfield. I attended church twice a week throughout my childhood and young adult life. 

I’ve been in Indonesia for about four months now. I haven’t yet experienced homesickness or separation anxiety from being away from my fellow Peace Corps Volunteers. 

When I first arrived at my permanent site in East Java, it felt like a complete break from the routine of the 10-week Pre-Service Training.

The whim to join the Peace Corps first came to Colleen Young when she was visiting her daughter, Katrina, who was serving in Peace Corps Malawi, in 1999.