Maria Perry finished a tour of duty with the Peace Corps in the western Pacific nation of Palau



"Palauans have great respect for elders," said Perry, who met her fiance while in the Peace Corps, and plans to marry in 2007. "Palauans also are committed to spending time together. You cannot get anything done without first 'talking story' for a while. When I honestly look at my life, I know that simply being with people is something I've always valued, though my busy schedule often prevented it. I'm eager to spend time with my friends and family and newly committed to cultivating those relationships."

Maria Perry finished a tour of duty with the Peace Corps in the western Pacific nation of Palau

Life lessons ; Time spent serving others abroad adds new perspectives

Jan 4, 2006 - Knoxville News-Sentinel

[Excerpt]

'QUICKNESS IS SLOWNESS'

During my first year in Palau, I was stationed in the capital, Koror," Perry said. "There I did everything from planning triathlons, marathons, 5Ks and open-ocean swimming races to officiating volleyball and basketball games and coaching Palau's Olympic swim team for a month (it was just one girl).

"For my second year, I was transferred to an outer island, Angaur. Angaur is about four hours south of the capital, by boat, and is home to about 150 people and 800 monkeys. Living there was a glorious experience. In Angaur, I had the opportunity to do what every Peace Corps volunteer dreams of doing -- simply living with the people and helping in any way I could think of."

Perry established a swim team, tutored and worked in the library at Angaur Elementary, held an aerobics class and organized beach cleanups and can recycling. But one of her efforts taught her about the Palauan way of life the hard way.

"I remember specifically trying to start a garden, but my host mother said I should ask Gina, another lady in the village, about the best way to do it," Perry said. "I went to see Gina, and she gave me some good advice and instructed me to see Violet. Violet said I should see Callista ... who said I should see Sabeth ..., etc. When I planted some saplings secretly out of frustration, fearing that I'd never get a garden, I found them dead a few days later.

"I asked my host mother about it, and she told me a Palauan proverb that translates roughly, 'Quickness is slowness.' She explained that she had pulled up the saplings because quickness is slowness -- if you plant quickly without getting all the proper advice, your garden will die anyway and you'll just have to start all over. Better to get all the advice and then plant when you're sure of how to do it correctly. Six months later, I finally had a garden."

While some lessons learned were frustrating, Perry said the Palauan culture taught her greater respect for people.

"Palauans have great respect for elders," said Perry, who met her fiance while in the Peace Corps, and plans to marry in 2007. "Palauans also are committed to spending time together. You cannot get anything done without first 'talking story' for a while. When I honestly look at my life, I know that simply being with people is something I've always valued, though my busy schedule often prevented it. I'm eager to spend time with my friends and family and newly committed to cultivating those relationships."

When this story was posted in April 2006, this was on the front page of PCOL:




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