Message from the
Editor
As I look around at our Peace Corps family of volunteers and staff , there ’ s no doubt that our service in Macedonia has transformed us . From physical changes in weight and style to internal changes in the way we see and be in the world , transformations manifest differently in each of us and for better or worse . Macedonia in particular has transformed me far more than I can claim to have transformed Macedonia . The seeds Macedonia planted in me have blossomed into hair extensions , high heels and skinny jeans , transforming this former мажкадонка ( tomboy ) slowly yet surely into a Macedonian девојче ( girl ). I have also undergone internal transformations as I learn ever more how to be present in the moment and patient with the different way of doing things around me . I welcome the changes .
As for the seeds that I am planting in Macedonia , I have long since let go of the need to equate success with visible results . When I tried to control the outcomes , I only frustrated myself and those around me . My task is not as a master builder here , but as the sower of new ideas , methods , and an “ anything is possible ” attitude . I have no doubt that the seeds we are planting here will indeed one day sprout , grow and bloom in ways we never expected and in moments when we are long gone . In the meantime , success for me is allowing myself to be transformed by these incredible opportunities and people around me . And by incredible I do not mean easy . I mean the hard , gritty personal work of cultural immersion , of painful self-reflection when our comfort zone is challenged . My buttons are constantly pushed when differences challenge the fundamental concepts that I ’ ve spent my entire life learning are “ right .” Only to find out there are people in this world who simply do things “ right ” differently . When I find myself frustrated , the root of it is not in the circumstances around me , it ’ s in the circumstances within me . While I came equipped with tools and resources to share how to “ do ” and work in this world , Macedonia has taught me a great lesson in how to “ be ” in the world .
‘ Tis the season for transformation . In this Spring 2013 issue of Pauza , see how Peace Corps service in Macedonia has transformed our fellow volunteers and staff , as well as how they are transforming Macedonia – from travels and projects to festivals and women ’ s day celebrations . Help a volunteer in naming Nadica ’ s newborn and hear from a recent Response Volunteer on what keeps her both returning to service and to Macedonia . As you kick back and enjoy this issue , hopefully in the warmth of this long-awaited spring , may you be mindful of the changes in and around you . In closing , it doesn ’ t interest me how old you are . I want to know if you have the humility at any age to be transformed by the people and the experiences around you . To realize that your steadfast way of seeing and being in the world is not the only way . It doesn ’ t interest me who you know or how you came to be here . I want to know if you will dare to allow these experiences to transform you . And in the words of Oriah , from her book The Invitation , “ It doesn ’ t interest me where or what or with whom you have studied . I want to know what sustains you from the inside when all else falls away . I want to know if you can be alone with yourself and if you truly like the company you keep in the empty moments .
Pozdrav ,
6 – Pauza Magazine