arts & cultural experiences
Love in the Time
of Peace Corps It wasn ’ t supposed to happen to me . I wasn ’ t supposed to be that girl . And yet , here I am , diving wholeheartedly into the cliché . I fell in love in the Peace Corps . I met my husband , Zlatko Dimovski in April of 2012 and we were wed in March of 2013 . The following are the vows I read to him , in broken Macedonian , on our wedding day . Vulnerability be damned .
By Karli-Marie Reyes-Dimovska , MAK 16
Thinking back on all the expectations I had before joining the Peace Corps and coming to Macedonia , getting married was never part of the plan . Everyone told me I would meet someone special here , but I shrugged it off saying things like : I ’ m not going to the Peace Corps to meet dudes !
We all join the Peace Corps for different reasons , to travel , to help people , to learn a new language and culture , to save the world .
Little did I realize it was not the world that needed saving , it was me .
I have always had a great capacity to love , but somewhere along the way , over the years , through the hardships , the pain , the heartbreak and struggles , I began to lose my capacity to be loved .
I am not a big believer in destiny or fate , but I do believe in timing . And I don ’ t mean traveling half way around the world to meet you at 2am in Lektira - I mean I met you at just the right time in my life , a time when preparing to come to the Peace Corps had not only opened me up to a world of new possibilities , but also a world where I was able to open up myself and let love in , to let you in .
This was never the plan , but when you meet someone who loves you so wholeheartedly , unconditionally , and without expectation you realize that you would be a fool to ever want anything else .
To have and to hold , for better or for worse , in sickness and in health , till death do us part - I ’ ve heard these words a hundred times , but I never really understood them until I met you .
I thought learning to love again would be the hardest thing in the world , but loving you is completely effortless , because of who you are . You are kind and honest , reliable and thoughtful . You are an amazing man , best friend , son , brother , and husband . I feel lucky to have and to hold you ; proud that you chose me to share your life with for better or for worse .
In you I have not just found love , but I have found a true partner . For the first time , someone I can truly see the rest of my life with in sickness and in health . For every inch I love you , you love me back three . And in that way our love will grow . Till death do us part .
16 – Pauza Magazine