27 Months in 27 Days

Welcome to my blog.  This will be the foundation for the expression of my experiences while in Botswana.  Readers will be able to subscribe to my Blog as well as comment on individual postings, and I really encourage you to do so.  But please be mindful that your comments are visible to other readers and that my family as well as very professional individuals will have access to your comments.  Be yourself, but be the tactful version of yourself.  :)

To the right you will find useful links such as information on Botswana, including an excerpt from my graduate thesis which coincidentally dealt in part with Botswana's extremely unique HIV/AIDS situation.  I will also from time to time post books that I am reading, CDs I may be listening to, or other useful links that I think you should check out so keep an eye out for changes in that column as well.

Currently it's just passing midnight, 27 days before I leave the country for 27 months.  I must admit, people keep asking me "Are you excited?!?" and my dutiful response of "Yes" is slightly forced.  It's not that I have any serious doubts or am ungrateful for the opportunity with which I am about to be blessed.  I think maybe I just feel as though, having been to Africa three times prior, I know what to expect.  At first realization of this feeling, I was disappointed that I felt so arrogantly about that and wish I shared the excitement of my fellow colleagues with whom I have had some contact with.  Don't get me wrong, I'm excited!  And after further thought, I came to a conclusion with which I am more comfortable:  I'm just not overly-romanticizing what is about to happen.  In general, I think this is a positive thing - it can look like another classic case of Brent's cynicism but I think in reality I'm just going in to this with a very level head:  no I'm-going-to-save-the-world mentality, no real thoughts of growing dreadlocks, scarring my face, not showering for a month, and killing livestock with my own hands (again) like the cliche idealist.  I think I know what I'm getting in to, both in good ways and bad, and I think that's why I'm entering it like any 'normal' person would enter a 'normal' job.  This experience is what I want my life to be, not some 2 year break from it, and so for me "excitement" for an upcoming radical change in my current lifestyle is really just RELIEF that I am finally doing what I for so long have wanted to do.

I will be both the happiest and the loneliest that I have ever been in the coming two years.  It will mean so much to me for you all to continue reading my thoughts, as thorough and exhausting as they may be, but in return I genuinely want to know what becomes new in your lives - even if it seems so small to you.  From previous experience in Africa, sometimes hearing the small things from home makes a world of a difference.  Your life IS equally important - to me and to the rest of a world, and to a society that requires a division of labor to function.  So, please, listen to what I have to say but of equal importance - let me listen to you too.

I love you all and I can't wait to share this journey with you.