The short story is that I am moving to Matagalpa, Nicaragua, for one year on September 27th. I will be returning to my job next September. Meanwhile my husband is staying and working in Eugene, visiting me as much as he can.
I feel compelled to share the longer story, going back 10 years (though I could go back further to my family influences and support), because as you’ll see this did not happen overnight or on a whim. Plus, I echo critical voices that say, “Quitting your job to pursue your passion is bullshit.” and “Why quitting your job to travel is a terrible idea.” I am not a blogger and have no idea how often I will post updates here, so please excuse the lack of witty banter in the timeline below and whatever lag appears between now and future posts
Spring 2006: I met my husband, Brian, in Mexico while we were both studying abroad in Spring 2006. As soon as I left Mexico, I knew I wanted to go abroad for a year. And Brian wanted to pursue a doctorate in Psychology.
2007: Brian started a Masters in Psychology at Wake Forest University in North Carolina and I started on application materials for a Rotary Ambassadorship to fund a year and Latin America.
2008: Rotary gave me the nicest rejection call of my life, encouraging me to apply again (by the next time I was ready to apply again the program was eliminated).
Brian and I got married in Spring 2008, including in our vows our commitment to "...defining and working toward our mutual goals, and sustaining each other's individual goals."
2009: We moved to Oregon for Brian’s PhD. I applied to every open job I could at University of Oregon, and landed a position at the Mills International Center, which proved to be a job that I love and thrive in. Over the next 7 years, I continued to work at the Mills Center, completed a Masters part-time, and conducted thesis research for 3 months in Costa Rica.
2013: I applied for a highly competitive Fulbright Fellowship to fund a year in Costa Rica, made it to the final round before being rejected.
2014: I tried again applying to Fulbright, spending months on getting all the materials as perfect as possible, this time aiming for Ecuador. Again, rejected.
2015/16: With Brian’s graduation on the horizon and him working full-time, rather than as a graduate assistant, we began talking about alternative ways to fund a year abroad including us funding the trip from savings if I couldn’t find a paying job abroad. I have been working to position myself as an “interculturalist” leading intercultural communication trainings and working with international education. “Significant international experience” is often a required qualification in my field. My 3 months in Spain, 5 months in Mexico, 3 months in Costa Rica, and shorter vacations abroad don’t quite cut it for “significant.” Really, a year abroad is required (which hopefully translates into deeper understanding and ability to adapt to other cultures). So, we started saving as much as we could each month. With the world as my oyster, we started looking at our world map and narrowing down where I could and would go. After many conversations and pondering, I decided on Matagalpa, Nicaragua. A small city in coffee country of Northern Nicaragua. Relatively safe and affordable on a budget with some conveniences of city living (e.g. internet cafes), but not too big and not too touristy.
Spring 2016: I applied for a year of unpaid leave from my job, utilizing a little known provision in the Union contract (Article 44, Section 4A). My leave was approved to begin September 16, 2016! Brian has been enjoying his job and decided, as he is just starting his career post-graduation and I didn’t land a job that could support him too, he would instead support me and continue in his work at University of Oregon.
August 2016: Brian graduated with his doctorate in Psychology! (No, he’s not a therapist - his area of focus is social psychology and statistics.)
September 27, 2016: I take off on my one-way ticket to Nicaragua. The journey begins. I have taken the advice of my Masters advisor and have not committed to volunteering with any particular organization. I hope to stay with a host family for the first couple months as I get settled and start checking out local non-profits and adapting to daily life.
So, this goal has been 10 years in the works and is a result of tenacity, careful planning, and privilege. After 3 failed fellowship applications, I had to wait until we had enough money saved to fund it and confirm that I could return to my job. And, we don’t have kids, which is -- in part -- so I could move abroad. I am fortunate to be healthy and grateful to have a partner with full-time work who is not just supportive but my co-conspirator in making my life goals happen. So, off I go.
I feel compelled to share the longer story, going back 10 years (though I could go back further to my family influences and support), because as you’ll see this did not happen overnight or on a whim. Plus, I echo critical voices that say, “Quitting your job to pursue your passion is bullshit.” and “Why quitting your job to travel is a terrible idea.” I am not a blogger and have no idea how often I will post updates here, so please excuse the lack of witty banter in the timeline below and whatever lag appears between now and future posts
Spring 2006: I met my husband, Brian, in Mexico while we were both studying abroad in Spring 2006. As soon as I left Mexico, I knew I wanted to go abroad for a year. And Brian wanted to pursue a doctorate in Psychology.
2007: Brian started a Masters in Psychology at Wake Forest University in North Carolina and I started on application materials for a Rotary Ambassadorship to fund a year and Latin America.
2008: Rotary gave me the nicest rejection call of my life, encouraging me to apply again (by the next time I was ready to apply again the program was eliminated).
Brian and I got married in Spring 2008, including in our vows our commitment to "...defining and working toward our mutual goals, and sustaining each other's individual goals."
2009: We moved to Oregon for Brian’s PhD. I applied to every open job I could at University of Oregon, and landed a position at the Mills International Center, which proved to be a job that I love and thrive in. Over the next 7 years, I continued to work at the Mills Center, completed a Masters part-time, and conducted thesis research for 3 months in Costa Rica.
2013: I applied for a highly competitive Fulbright Fellowship to fund a year in Costa Rica, made it to the final round before being rejected.
2014: I tried again applying to Fulbright, spending months on getting all the materials as perfect as possible, this time aiming for Ecuador. Again, rejected.
2015/16: With Brian’s graduation on the horizon and him working full-time, rather than as a graduate assistant, we began talking about alternative ways to fund a year abroad including us funding the trip from savings if I couldn’t find a paying job abroad. I have been working to position myself as an “interculturalist” leading intercultural communication trainings and working with international education. “Significant international experience” is often a required qualification in my field. My 3 months in Spain, 5 months in Mexico, 3 months in Costa Rica, and shorter vacations abroad don’t quite cut it for “significant.” Really, a year abroad is required (which hopefully translates into deeper understanding and ability to adapt to other cultures). So, we started saving as much as we could each month. With the world as my oyster, we started looking at our world map and narrowing down where I could and would go. After many conversations and pondering, I decided on Matagalpa, Nicaragua. A small city in coffee country of Northern Nicaragua. Relatively safe and affordable on a budget with some conveniences of city living (e.g. internet cafes), but not too big and not too touristy.
Spring 2016: I applied for a year of unpaid leave from my job, utilizing a little known provision in the Union contract (Article 44, Section 4A). My leave was approved to begin September 16, 2016! Brian has been enjoying his job and decided, as he is just starting his career post-graduation and I didn’t land a job that could support him too, he would instead support me and continue in his work at University of Oregon.
August 2016: Brian graduated with his doctorate in Psychology! (No, he’s not a therapist - his area of focus is social psychology and statistics.)
September 27, 2016: I take off on my one-way ticket to Nicaragua. The journey begins. I have taken the advice of my Masters advisor and have not committed to volunteering with any particular organization. I hope to stay with a host family for the first couple months as I get settled and start checking out local non-profits and adapting to daily life.
So, this goal has been 10 years in the works and is a result of tenacity, careful planning, and privilege. After 3 failed fellowship applications, I had to wait until we had enough money saved to fund it and confirm that I could return to my job. And, we don’t have kids, which is -- in part -- so I could move abroad. I am fortunate to be healthy and grateful to have a partner with full-time work who is not just supportive but my co-conspirator in making my life goals happen. So, off I go.