Almost gone...

I left Chico today. It was very strange saying bye to some of the most influential people I met. Here I am sitting in Tahoe, and my mind is running wild. I've been distracting myself from the thought of leaving for the past month and now it's finally time for me to sit down and think about this huge commitment I have decided to make. And why not put all of my crazy thoughts in a blog for all of these influential people to read!?!
I have wanted to join the Peace Corps for as long as I can remember. The reasoning for it was simple: I want to experience a new culture and help those in need. But it's become much more than that. I'm doing to this to learn more about myself than I ever thought possible, to challenge myself beyond my capacity, to develop relationships with people and learn from them, and to get out of the U.S. and experience the "real world". When I really think about it, I'm doing this to help myself much more than other people.
My brother told me the other day that doing things that are scary, are the things that are worth doing. Which is good because I am TERRIFIED. The thought of leaving everything and everyone I know behind to do this seems crazy to me right now. But when I take a step back and think about the real reasons I'm doing this my doubts fade. I know this is what I should be doing and that brings me peace of mind. And thinking about how amazing it's going to be to come back in 2 years (which will fly by) and see all of the wonderful things my loved ones are doing is so exciting.
So there it is... my first blog. I promise it will get more exciting and I will try to keep you all updated as regularly as possible on this thing with all of my tales of adventure!
Love you all,
Annie Banannie