SANDO'S POST
And today we have a visiting lecturer. Jason Sando is fresh back to the United States after 10 days in Ukraine.
My time in Ukraine was a fun and interesting experience. (As most travels turn out to be when you have a good friend with you.) Ukraine is not like the United States. (Which is good because if it were, visiting would be boring.) What I am trying to say is that it is exactly all of these differences that made everyday a battle for little-ol�-American-me. To sum it up, I would say this, "Everything in the Ukraine works, just not at all the way I thought it would." Now, I am not a sissy, in fact I consider myself quite tough, but by the end of every day I was worn out. From all the learning, and walking, and bumping, and trudging, and drinking, and drinking, and drinking and eating and drinking more and trying to translate and not understanding�it can take a toll on a fellow�but for Mr. John Sheetz it seems it is a walk in the snow covered park. (Where there happens to be squirrels with very hairy ears.) So, if I was that worn out after a mere ten days, can you imagine doing it for over 2 years! Probably not. (And if you say you can imagine it then you are either a delusional liar who lies to one�s self and probably others, or you are made of the same sturdy moral fabric as John, and for that I commend you, though until you go to Ukraine as a volunteer I will still think you are a little bit of a liar.) Now, I would like to tell anyone reading this that all of the above was not written to tell about my trip in Ukraine, it was written to put into perspective just exactly how demanding of a situation John is in and how selfless and good of a person John is. When I asked John about why he was doing it, he basically said that he wanted to make a difference. And John really does try to make a difference; he works very hard informing and educating the youth of Ukraine, I mean he already speaks the language for crying out loud. A new language in less than 10 months is no easy task. Now, as if traveling halfway around the world to volunteer to help kids in a world where almost everything is foreign to you isn�t enough, John one day informs me that he is worried that he won�t make a difference, or he isn�t doing enough. He says to me that he hopes he isn�t like some of those other volunteers who only come to the Peace Corp for a free chance to live overseas. In fact, I think when he wasn�t working he felt guilty, as if he should be doing more! (After he informed me of his uncertainties I debated telling him the whole story about the pebble in the lake and all those ripples where caused by one little pebble�blah..blah..blah, or just hitting him upside his doubtful head, instead I drank more vodka.) So I think the point I am trying to make is that John wants to make a difference in the world, and for the next couple of years almost every action he has will be done for the good of others. That is something to think about because most people don�t know someone who is truly selfless, so selfless that he would continually doubt himself and ask if he can give more of himself away. So I don� know what any ready should take away from this, but just remember what John is doing and be proud to know him, I know I am.
posted by jjs @ 6:29 AM
4 Comments:
I am sorry, but I have to say this. Sando made me promise to post this without reading it. Having now read it, I find it very heartwarming, but a bit gratuitous.
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Of course you find it gratuitous, you're too humble and it's embarassing to hear such things about yourself, i think. 'Trimay!' (take the compliment)
I had a great time meeting Jason and spent 3 months every day in language training with you. Call it whatever you want, but you've definitely influenced me and I have no doubt of the influence are having with others. See you this summer at Survival Camp and/or sailing to Turkey on the Black Sea. I'm not kidding about that John. We need to do it.
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