Footsoldiers of Compassion

Before coming to Guatemala, we had two days of "Staging" (general orientation and paperwork) in Washington DC. It was a strange and overwhelming couple of days, sitting in a room with 30 strangers that I´d be spending the next two years getting to know excruciatingly well (including their digestive systems) and trying desperately to imagine what Guatemala would really be like.

But the strangest part of all was our surprise visit to the White House and meeting the prez. It just so happened National Volunteer Day fell on the date of our Staging, and we were invited to the White House to be part of an event recognizing American volunteers. All the of the Country Directors of the Peace Corps were there, and the head of the Peace Corps, as well as representatives from AmeriCorps and other service organizations. As an incoming volunteer group to Guatemala, we were chosen to take a photo with the president, and given assigned seat in the small room where he made his speech. We were personally recognized and applauded, and President Bush referred to us in his speech as the "footsoldiers of compassion", a name we´ve definitely taken to heart. Yeah, so the man´s not exactly known for his eloquency.

The coolest part was that we were given some free time prior to the event to poke around the White House and mingle with the Peace Corps heads, which were really interesting and easy to talk to. As far as the president, I just felt like I had stepped into a movie scene or something... he looks and talks just like he does on tv. But regardless, it definitely spiced up Staging a bit.