This past week, the volunteers from Group 35 (all of the volunteers that I arrived with 2 years ago) gathered in a picturesque town called Slavske in the Carpathians. Despite a lot of things to do both at school and with wrapping up secondary projects, I had been looking forward to a few days of escape and seeing some people I hadn’t seen for a while and some I hadn’t seen in two years. I also expected it to be a bit weird and most certainly awkward, and it was, but it was also great. We spent a few days and nights in a lovely hotel. My friends and I arrived to our room in shock, marveling at the massive towel warmer that was functioning and was actually hot, the hot radiators, the hot water, the balcony view… the list goes on. We knew we were still in Ukraine, however, when we spotted the herd of sheep grazing below our balcony. The days were spent being fed in massive quantities several times a day, thinking about our service, and hanging out. I tend to find self-reflection challenging, especially when directed to do so, so the sessions in which we were supposed to think hard about our service, our lives, our expectations and the real results, and lessons learned was not the most fruitful, but it did provide a feeling of some kind of an attempt at closure that I appreciated. With two more months in country, the idea of good bye and closing service still seems remote, less remote than 25 months ago, but still fairly unreal. I was surprised to feel how small our group seemed. We have certainly reduced our numbers from 70 some odd to 50 some odd which I’m sure contributed to the feeling, but I also just felt like I actually really new and had solid relationships with more volunteers than I had realized. Despite being spread hither and yon, with long gaps between phone conversations or visits, the inherent nature of being volunteers together creates a deeper basis for intermittent relationships, no surprise there. But I was reminded, as I have been a few times over the past couple of years when I have met and spent time with certain volunteers, that I have had the pleasure of encountering a few gems that I hope I will get to see after Ukraine. Unfortunately, thinking about these people and my relationships with them outside of the bubble of Peace Corps service always begs the question, what if when the common denominator is gone, the relationship can’t stand on its own and move forward? I guess the answer is to be determined.
