After College Possibilities: To Africa with the Peace Corps

“Your 20’s are your ‘selfish’ years. It’s a decade to immerse yourself in every single thing possible. Be selfish with your time, and all the aspects of you. Tinker with shit, travel, explore, love a lot, love a little, and never touch the ground.”
---Kyoko Escamilla 

I'm always looking toward the future; I'm a little restless with my life, I suppose. But I think this is because I'm a dreamer by nature, always looking toward the next adventure, curious about what the world has to show me and teach me. That being said, I just finished my Freshman year at UNC Asheville and I'm already considering post-college options for myself. Part of my restlessness is due to the fact that I, like many others my age, am still finding myself among the many tempting areas of study that college and the world have to offer me. Recently though, I have started to reconsider my purpose in the world and I've been leaning a lot more toward work of a charitable nature. Less than a year ago, I wanted to work a high-powered job for an advertising company or social media network. Now, however, I no longer care about my salary as much because I'd rather be rich with experience than rich in material goods.

So, after college, I am highly considering joining the Peace Corps and volunteering for 27 months in Africa. I'd like to work on one of the health projects there, such as malaria or HIV/Aids prevention or work in education. 

Why Africa, though? Africa has long intrigued me; it's where all humanity originated, the natural landscape is so varied and gorgeous, the people are extremely diverse, and it also faces some of the world's most horrific issues. All this in mind, the thought of even having any impact on such a vast, complex continent seems extremely daunting. Yet, this is what attracts me to it. It is the little things put together; our little individual impacts that shape the future. Plus, who doesn't want an adventure in a completely different landscape and culture than your own? I know I certainly do.

Below are two videos, the first on HIV/AIDS and the second on malaria. 

fact: every minute, a child dies of malaria