The Ponds of Kalambayi

"Still, I was uncomfortable with the do-gooder image. I wasn't a crusader. My goal was to help a few villages on that continent live slightly better lives. There was nothing more spectacular about it than that.
The motivation was also partly selfish. Four years of college had just produced a diploma with my name on it, but no clear instructions on how to proceed. According to widely accepted social timetables, it was time to start paying taxes and voting and putting a little something into a 401(K) retirement plan each month. It was time, in short, to be a real person. But each time I looked inside myself, no real person seemed to be lacing up his boots, ready to step out. Where was he? Who was he? What kind of work would he do? I wasn't sure. Living in Africa, stripped nearly naked of my own culture, I hoped to give my deepest feelings a chance to produce some answers. I hoped to travel my inner continent, in other words, and come back with a better focused picture."

This passage is from The Ponds of Kalambayi by Mike Tidwell. It chronicles his Peace Corps service in Zaire in the 80's. It's a great book if you're ever interested in serving in the P.C. Tidwell writes honestly and has made me realize a little more about how potentially rewarding but emotionally taxing this entire experience could be.

I also like this passage, because this is similar to the way I feel about volunteering (which is now less than one month away). I am just one person trying to help a few others, but trying to help myself just the same.