My heart is missing you!!

...so here I am...sitting at a computer lab at Wheaton attempting to pound out my last paper of the semester...and I saw Mandy's post and thought, "why not?" So here's my update:

First exciting thing, I don't know if any of you have heard of "Hands Along the Nile Development Services," but they basically are a DC based development firm headed up by a Wheaton grad primarily focused on helping Egypt and developing dialogue programs. Anyway, I met the director of the organization here at Wheaton this semester and she knew of MESP--she had actually been a lecturer for Dr. Dave before, and connected me with a project they are working on. So it looks like I'll be doing a sort of informal correspondence internship helping to develop a grassroots dialogue thing for Americans and Middle Easterners to participate in. Cool, huh?

Second exciting thing, I have been in the process of applying for the Peace Corps for a while now and just last week some decisions were made. If I am lucky, I will be heading out in June to do Youth Development in either Morocco or Jordan. Cool, huh? I have no idea any details beyond that--I am still basically applying, but I wanted to let ya'll know because no one here really understands why exactly I would choose North Africa/Middle East over, say, Africa. But I'm sure at least some of you can empathize with the heart aching desire to return to the region to learn and experience more. I just can't get the middle east out of my blood--even though many of you will remember how Egypt and the Middle East wasn't always fun and games...but there it is. Morocco or Jordan. In June. AAAHHH!!!

Third exciting thing, if I AM over there, I will EASILY be able to visit those of you in, say, Cairo. In fact, you'd better expect it.

Fourth exciting thing, I am heading home by Greyhound (yay gas conservation!) tomorrow. I am going to miss seeing everyone here, but it will be a very welcome break nevertheless. One final and one paper left...

In terms of alternatives to the Peace Corps--there's a certificate program in Palestinian and Arab studies at Birzeit University that looks interesting (and relatively cheap) that I might check out sometime between now and the end of my educational career. I am also seriously looking at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies--they offer a REALLY sweet fellowship for returned peace corps volunteers (so that would obviously be conditional on me actually going to the peace corps). I could also stay on at World Relief for a while if I really had nothing to do. My internship with them is over, which is a great relief, I must say. It was fascinating and I learned a TON, but it was uber stressful and draining. I'm not sure local refugee resettlement is something I am really passionate about. Next semester I will be working for World Relief's counseling center--data entry, support staff sort of work...but there are a TON of middle easterners there. One of the counselors is one of the cutest Jordanians I have ever met.

Mandy, I would love to join you for either or both of those conference thingys. I hope you get the internship! I can imagine it now: Tory and Mandy in Cairo again = crazy metra experience number two! Fun stuff.

Ok well, I should stop trying to avoid my work. But know that I love all of you so much and wish the best for you. Remember it was only a year ago that we started writing on this blog? I remember I was in Africa, missing you all like crazy. Now here I am in Wheaton, still missing you all like crazy. I'm getting all excited thinking about what we are all going to be doing post-grad. Keep us all updated!!!

LOVE and PEACE!!!

Tory