I am going to keep this post relatively short. It has been an exhausting last few weeks and I haven't been able to give this blog the attention I intended to give it. For this I apologize.
If you haven't already heard, the YAGM program made the difficult decision to bring home all country volunteers early. This decision was made in order to be proactive in protecting the safety of YAGM and our communities in reaction to the recent COVID-19 out break.
At the beginning of Lent, it was my goal to post a new blog entry every week, and although I have missed the last few due to our evacuation from Senegal, now that I am back home and readjusting I thought I would write a quick check in.
So, how did I get home and what has been happening since?
First: The evacuation from Senegal. In the effort to get our team home safely, it was imperative my cohort leave Senegal before the closure of the Dakar airport (effectively closing the country's borders). Our team was split into to flight groups, with my group flying through Istanbul then NYC. The first 9.5 hour flight took me and two others from Dakar to Istanbul. After a short lay over, our next flight was a 10+ hour journey to JFK. Upon landing, only one of the three in my group was able to make it all the way home that day. Unfortunately, I had to spend the night in NYC before getting the first flight out to Fresno the next day, because American Airlines had cancelled all flights. My flight to Fresno was not too bad, and although I missed Senegal dearly, I was relieved that my long trip home was completed with relative ease and safely.
Second: What I have been up to since. Arriving at the airport and seeing my mom for the first time in about 7 months was overwhelming, however, I was happy to see my family again. I was instructed upon arrival to go into self-quarantine for 14 days. In quarantine I was able to ease slowly back into American life, spend time with my family, puzzle/relax, and start to take the time to reflect on my experience in Senegal as well as the evacuation. Although today is my official release from quarantine, I am still largely stuck at home due to the shelter-in-place order. Honestly not much happening in Clovis at the moment!
It is my hope to continue to blog on this site, at least through the end of June when my year of service in Senegal was scheduled to end. If you are interested in following along, I would love for you to share with me in this new journey of coming home. I plan on continuing to share stories of my time in Senegal and write a more thorough reflection of my YAGM journey and transition home.
In these truly interesting times, I still encourage you all to be kind to yourself and be kind to others. We will be in touch soon:)
It's wonderful to hear from you, Charlie! What a journey getting home! And what a crazy life experience. We will all have some kind of COVID-19 story, but yours will be particularly unique and something you will reflect on in the years to come. I look forward to your continuing blogs and your reflections on what going forward will look like for you. I hope you've been able to stay connected to your Senegal friends and family. I'm sure they miss you as you miss them.