Second Chances

Today, nine months since returning home and ten since I last posted here, I am back in Kocani with a second chance.  It is hard to believe I have been gone so long.  It is even more difficult to believe that I was given this chance to complete my service.  Only the good graces (and I hope the good judgement) of the country director and the staff here in Macedonia allowed this return.


I didn't write about my reasons for leaving and will not do that now.  Whatever they were they are in the past and I look ahead to a bright future for the next year and eight months.


My Macedonian colleagues in the municipality gave me a warm welcome and are very happy that I decided to return.  They look forward to starting our suspended English classes right away.   My Peace Corp friends and the staff in Skopje have been very generous in their welcome also.  Of course there are some who wonder why I was allowed to return and question the decision, but frankly I am not at all concerned with those few.  No matter what organization, there are always those that think they know better than those making the decisions.

My outlook this time has changed .  I  see my assignment differently, the local people differently and I my understanding of what defines successful service has also evolved.


So, this re-entry into the blogging world is short and sweet but I look forward to chronicling many good and hopefully interesting events in the weeks and months to come.