October 25, 2004: Headlines: COS - El Salvador: Blogs - El Salvador: Personal Web Site: Vishnu in El Salvador says the Peace Corps is not a loner's paradise
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October 25, 2004: Headlines: COS - El Salvador: Blogs - El Salvador: Personal Web Site: Vishnu in El Salvador says the Peace Corps is not a loner's paradise
Vishnu in El Salvador says the Peace Corps is not a loner's paradise
Being somewhat of a loner in college, I figured that the Peace Corps would be heaven. Going to a third-world country and living without other Americans in sight seemed the perfect set-up for someone who rarely chose to be in the company of large groups of people.
Vishnu in El Salvador says the Peace Corps is not a loner's paradise
Monday, October 25, 2004
Not a loner's paradise
Being somewhat of a loner in college, I figured that the Peace Corps would be heaven. Going to a third-world country and living without other Americans in sight seemed the perfect set-up for someone who rarely chose to be in the company of large groups of people.
But so far, at least lately, being here in El Salvador has made me more social. For instance, only lately have I started hanging out with people doing what would most accurately be referred to as ‘nothing.’ Just sitting around, saying something everything however long, but mostly just sitting. Every once in a while I wonder, with reason, “is this person bored? Should I leave? Is this silence a subtle hint at something?” But most of the time I just keep sitting, because that seems pretty appropriate in most cases.
I guess the point is, although I’ve usually (arguably) thrived on minimal social interaction with others in the past, I shouldn’t have taken that to mean that I’d be ok with none. Like, living amongst strangers has among other things taught me that it is super-important for me to spend some time, however little it may be, with other people who kind of see the world the way I do.
When this story was posted in June 2005, this was on the front page of PCOL:




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Story Source: Personal Web Site
This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; COS - El Salvador; Blogs - El Salvador
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