on the job: I get knocked down…

…but I get up again (and again, and again).

I was knocked down this morning.

I’ve been doing presentations on the volunteer club to get kids interested in it and to try to spread the message of volunteerism.  Today while doing some project brainstorming with high schoolers, a pack of teenage boys had the balls to say that annihilating the Rroma would solve the town’s problem of garbage on the street.  And I double-checked that there wasn’t a language gap — the guys meant killing off.  I was speechless and scared to hear that come out of a kid’s mouth while his friends nodded in agreement.  Packs of teenage boys are bad enough.  Packs of hateful teenage boys is down right dangerous.

Secondly, while folks at my organization are interested in and see a need for a volunteer club (or anything else I’m doing), they don’t really show it.  Actions speak louder than words.  So I’ve been trying to get someone to come with me to the presentations — pitch in, observe me in action, get excited about the interest from the school kids — per PC model, this should be a collaboration (which is a relatively foreign concept to many Romanians).  Someone offered to come to today’s presentation.  We talked about it yesterday; she was excited.  Then she didn’t show.  And my heart sunk.  And my spirit sunk. A?a este.

So between the “enlightened ideas” (please note the sarcasm) of a pack of teenage boys and being stood up, I’m duly knocked down.   I never much liked Chumbawumba but those lyrics are the theme song of Peace Corps Service.  I just hope the Peace Corps gods know how much I’m putting in to persevering.