When we were in training, oh-so-many months ago, a staff member read us a speech recently given by Paul Kagame, the president of Rwanda, about aid, development and the Peace Corps’ recent return to his country. I remember getting a little teary-eyed that day in July 2009, excited and moved by the possibilities that lie ahead of me. I’ve kept a copy of this speech taped to my wall for nearly two years now, such was its effect on me.
My experience as a volunteer is definitely different from volunteers in Rwanda or other African nations, different from other volunteers right here in Peru, different even from my own expectations of two years ago. But there is something uniformly true and poignant about Mr. Kagame’s speech that speaks to the heart of the Peace Corps experience – the generosity of the host country nationals to open their countries, and their hearts, to volunteers.
In the waning months of my service, I’ve found myself reflecting a lot on what has happened over the course of these two years. What’s been better, harder, funnier, weirder, worse than I’d anticipated. What I’d do differently. What I’d keep the same. Of all the things I’ve seen and done, what’s highlighted in the following excerpt of the speech is the best. Without a doubt.
“We view the return of the Peace Corps as a significant event in Rwanda’s history. These young men and women represent what is good about America; I have met former volunteers who have run major aid programs here, invested in our businesses, and I even count them among my friends and close advisors.
Peace Corps volunteers are well educated, optimistic, and keen to assist us as we continue to rebuild, but one must also recognize that we have much to offer them as well…
We will teach your children to prepare and enjoy our foods and speak our language. We will invite them to our weddings and funerals, and out into the communities to observe our traditions. We will teach them that in Africa, family is a broad and all-encompassing concept, and that an entire generation treats the next as its own children.
And we will have discussions in the restaurants, and debates in our staff rooms and classrooms where we will learn from each other: What is the nature of prosperity? What is a cohesive society, and how can we strengthen it? How does a nation recognize and develop the leaders of future generations? …
We will do this because we see that the only investment with the possibility of infinite return is in our children, and because after a couple of years in Rwanda, working and learning with our people, these Peace Corps volunteers will be our sons and daughters too.”
--Paul Kagame, President of Rwanda
