Reports, Stories, and Creativity

September 13, 2018

A year into Peace Corps service in China, I can say without any doubt that I've met incredible people: fellow PCVs, Peace Corps Staff, amazing host families, counterpart teachers at site, my students, and unexpected friends that I run into like clockwork almost every time I go to the supermarket.

Isolated as I am at site, living by myself, working by myself, without many opportunities to see or work with other Volunteers on PC 1st Goal work (that is, teaching students at the tertiary level), it can be difficult to remember that my work in Wuwei is just a small part of the story - a small part of the story of service in Wuwei, a small part of the story of service in China before and after my two years, and a small part of the story of everything that amazing PCVs are accomplishing each and every day throughout these four provinces.

This blog post, then, is a reminder to me, and to you, that I'm not alone in my work, and that there are numerous other stories to be shared, and that there is a lot more to learn about China and Peace Corps China than I could ever offer solely through my personal blog.

First, I'd like to share with you a short document that Peace Corps China compiles every year to share with PCVs, Peace Corps officials, Chinese government officials, and anyone who's interested, the work and service that is continuously in motion here in China. It's the Peace Corps China 2017 Annual Report, and it offers a much wider overview of the program here in China, and contains stories from Volunteers throughout the country. I was fortunate this year to have one of my stories included in the report to represent the Gansu volunteers, a shortened version of the story that I shared previously: Two Homes, One World, and a Bridge. Please take a look at the short report below!

Next, I'd like to share with you the most recent issue of Rice Paper - a publication you have probably never heard of ... but it is Peace Corps China's very own "volunteer run publication featuring past and present volunteers that serve throughout four provinces of China ... to provide a one of a kind perspective of our short-lived, but forever remembered time as Peace Corps Volunteers." [from Rice Paper's website]. Similar to my own blog, "all things published through Rice Paper are not associated with or a reflection of the U.S. Government."

Rice Paper publishes a few issues every year, with a variety of stories, memories and perspectives on service. This latest issue, Creativity, includes creative works from numerous PCVs - it even has two poems that I have written, and I hope you will take a look. If you'd like to skim the entire article, I've embedded the web issue below; if you'd only like read my poems, feel free to see them directly by clicking here.

If you enjoy this issue, make sure to stop by the Rice Paper every couple of months to see the latest pieces!

Finally, there were 70 other Peace Corps Volunteers that entered service at the same time that I did - a few have left, but many remain, and each of us discovers a little bit about China, a little bit about the United States, and a lot about ourselves during these two years.

Each Volunteer is different, each experience is different, and each of our individual stories could form a library that would begin to share what it is like to live, work, and serve in China from dozens of different voices and perspectives. If you've enjoyed my blog thus far, and are looking for some other perspectives, check out their blogs below - but I hope that you will also find time to come back to mine in the future.

James Arthur: thesongoflucius.wordpress.com

Kat Huang: chinolombian-peacecorps.tumblr.com

Krista Mangiardi: internationallandscapes.com

Nora McKenna: norasdazedandconfucius.wordpress.com

Jeannette Neto: missmochilera.com

Connie Ng: latefordinners.wordpress.com

Zoe Novak: zoegoestochinablog.wordpress.com

Kolby Overstreet: laowaikolby.com

Aaron Stellarini: aaronese.wordpress.com

Tasmin Swanson: tasminswanson.wordpress.com

Kelsey Truman: kelseyatruman.wixsite.com/meinchina

Lizzie Utset: pclizzieintheprc.wordpress.com