Written by CorpsAfrica/Ghana Volunteer Mr. Iddrisu Issahaku
My life has been full of anxiety ever since the CorpsAfrica journey started; an anxiety that moves from one stage to the other. After putting in my application in July 2021, I was anxious about whether I would be invited for an interview or not. After I was called for an interview in September of 2022, I was anxious about whether I would be allowed to serve or not. My anxiety level was so high at this point but I kept assuring myself that it shall be well.
When I finally got a congratulatory message in October, I told myself that I was now a happy person. Little did I know that another anxiety awaited me even as I was preparing for my Pre-Service Training (PST). Having arrived in Accra earlier on Saturday, November 12, 2022, I finally joined some colleagues who came from the north in the early hours of Sunday, November 13, 2022, at Achimota New Station. The reception from the CorpsAfrica staff gave me the impression that I was coming to join a family. And exactly as I thought, the experience at PST was just like being with a family.
Everything about PST gave me joy but anytime I remembered that I didn’t know the community I was heading to, my old anxiety set in again. Every day, I prayed that the communities would be mentioned to us so that I would be at peace. I realized that I wasn’t the only one having these anxieties.
When I was finally told that I was where I was assigned, I became happy but at the same time, I became sad. I was happy because I knew for a fact that my community was in the north and I had almost everything in common with the community like language and culture. This gave me a little bit of joy. However, when I listened to the expectations of people and thought about going to live in a community I didn’t know much about, also gave me several sleepless nights.
I finally arrived in the Savelugu Municipal at about 6:30 pm on the 6th of January 2023, I was the last person to be dropped off. I was happy to see that my host family had prepared ahead to receive me in the community. The following morning, I was introduced to the community, and from there life as a Volunteer started.
In the past 2 months in the community, I spent time interacting with students, men, women, and youth groups. Just listening and observing has taught me invaluable lessons as a Volunteer and development agent, and I am prepared to learn more going forward.