Whoa. That’s all I can say right now as I sit in the Amsterdam airport after what I can only describe as a whirlwind two weeks. I’m en route to DC. I’ve been medevac’d. I guess one could say that I am in shock.
After Egypt, I had these moments of clarity with my service where I had begun to see Ukraine in an new way. I was truly starting to appreciate it for what I consider oddities and I could find beauty in the strangest things. Instead of an exasperated UGH UKRAINE sigh, it was more of a light hearted chuckle and eye roll Ukraine. Things just started looking different, and I had hit my groove with my service. I felt like things were going to change in a monumental way, although, to be honest, this wasn’t the monumental change that I was expecting.
January was a really stressful month, because I was working to get my SPA grant finalized and submitted. There was some kicking and screaming, literally, not the kicking, but the screaming part in trying to get things done. Let’s just say, I wasn’t the only one screaming. Needless to say, it was a really stressful month, but I knew that the last week of January would bring with it Language Refresher. For roughly a week, me and my Russian speaking PCVs were getting together to well practice our Russian and get some additional language training in a FUN environment. So even though I was going through hell most of January, I knew that at least this would make it worth it. I would get to see my clustermates and some other good friends since we had strategically applied for Language Refresher all together on Thanksgiving. It was really going to be a hoot to be reunited.
That said, I left site and headed to Kiev a few days before language refresher to have a meeting and to get a medical appointment out of the way. Without too much detail, within the span of 5 hours that Friday, my life in Ukraine got turned upside-down. That’s not to say that what happened sunk in at that time. It didn’t. I had a busy weekend lined up with a trip to visit Kim in Ktop, followed by us travelling to visit our host families in Starry Belouse for two days considering the Language Refresher was going to be held in Chernigiv, and then, Language Refresher for the rest of the week. I hopped on the train to see Kim and chatted quite normally with a couple of friends on the phone and then realized what the heck had just happened.
The doctor had sat me down and explained things. He told me I was going to be medevac’d (although he didn’t say when, because he didn’t yet know) and asked me if I wanted any medication to help with nerves or sleeping or what not since he had just supposedly dealt me kind of a major blow. Well, clearly, I was in shock, because halfway through that train ride I was kicking myself for not taking him up on some drugs. At the time, I really didn’t believe the medevac was happening. I just thought it was a remote possibility. But on the train, I replayed what he said and I was like, Oh SHIT! I’m getting booted out of Ukraine.
I spent the weekend with Kim, on Sunday we headed to the host family, on Monday we went into Chernigiv to hang with Caroline, Vicki and Cheryl and to toast Vicki’s birthday at one of our old haunts. Then on a very packed marshrutka back to Starry B, I got the phone call to drop everything and go back to site, pack up, grab my documents and get back to Kiev ideally by Wednesday. WHAT!?! That was too much for comprehension and virtually impossible since it’s a 2 hour trip to Kiev and then another 12 hours back to my site… horrendous. Let’s just say, I freaked the fuck out. I had banked on Washington taking a few days to make the determination. Apparently, all it took was an email from Ukraine. Things NEVER happen that fast in Ukraine! NEVER.
In the end, I kind of refused to leave. I wanted to go to Language Refresher and spend time with my friends, and then Conor and I had planned to spend the following weekend in Kiev. I mean, shit, I don’t know what is going to happen in DC. Let’s just say I created a little confusion at the Peace Corps office in Kiev when I went on the lamb by going to Language Refresher. I think more than one person would have liked to wring my neck on Tuesday. I want to return to Ukraine after they sort out my medical problems, but I can’t be sure that that will happen in the 45 days that I have to get well before I get medically separated. I might be saying goodbye to some people for good, and this was the thought that I had when I decided to just go to Language Refresher. I compromised by cutting the Kiev time short by one day. I got to see my peeps and we had a decent time considering there was this thing hanging over the time we had to spend together. Hopefully things will go well in DC and I will make it back post haste. I’m not done with Ukraine yet. It’s funny and very true that you don’t fully appreciate something until you lose it. Crap Ukraine, I don’t want to leave you yet!
