Kayla Kawalec, Group 134 YinD PCVL
Working in a major metropolitan city as a Peace Corps Volunteer is…atypical. After serving as a traditional volunteer for two years in rural Thailand, I got the opportunity to extend for a third year as the Peace Corps Thailand Volunteer Leader, or PCVL, in Bangkok. Many of my fellow volunteers, and others outside of the Peace Corps bubble, have been curious about what exactly I’m doing in this mysterious position of one. If you want to go further in-depth, fellow Peace Corps Thailand RPCV, Jim Damico, invited me to do some reflecting over at Wandering the World. But if you’d rather the TL;DR, I can easily list the reasons why my life in Thailand over the last five months is different than the two years prior: I travel to work by bus rather than bike, live in an apartment rather than a two-story wooden house in the rice fields, and I don’t regularly visit schools. Instead, my work is split between the Department of Local Administration (DLA) under the Ministry of Interior of Thailand and the Peace Corps Thailand office. While my commute, living accommodations, and responsibilities don’t resemble those of a “typical” PCV anymore, I’ve discovered that much of my lived experience is still, shockingly, the same.
Now, instead of working directly with students, I work with DLA and the youth service providers they support. I’ve attended policy meetings at the Ministry of Education, shared ideas with representatives from UNICEF about the national Youth Council database, and summarized survey data collected from government teachers who attended a professional development conference on the topic of “AI in Education”. My coworkers are still Thai government employees, fulfilling the Peace Corps mission to work alongside community members towards their prioritized goals. And while my “community” now covers the country, and I’ve moved up to a department with over 500 people, when my office surprised me with cake on my birthday, I was reminded of my previous, “massive” Tessaban of 60. I still stretch my Thai language to its limits, puzzle over my role as a volunteer, and generally just do my best to answer my coworker’s questions about the price of fruit in America and what alligator meat tastes like. (I’m originally from Florida, and my coworkers are really fascinated by the idea that people eat gator in the South, even though I do not.)
With the Peace Corps, instead of reaching out to staff for advice, I do my best to guide other volunteers using my experience from the last two years. As the PCVL, I act as a bridge between office work and field work. I’ve worked with staff on a volunteer living allowance assessment, helped them create pre-departure videos for incoming trainees, served as a resource volunteer for a variety of in-service trainings, and supported my program manager on site identification trips. While I miss hearing the excited buzz of my students alerting each other that “P’Kayla’s here!!” at my site, I’ve been fortunate to support other volunteers with camps at their sites and still feel connected to the youth we’re serving. I may not live in a rural village anymore, but I’m still beholden to all of the same volunteer rules, which means feeling limited at times, even in a big city. (Believe me, my life would still be much easier if I could take a motorcycle to work.)
I’m only halfway through my extension, and there’s still so much to be given and gained in this role. I’ll do my best for the people of Thailand I’m here to serve, my Peace Corps Thailand coworkers, and fellow volunteers. I’ll make mistakes along the way. If I learned anything from Peace Corps service, it’s that I won’t see the big picture until much later. If I’ve learned anything from Thailand, it’s that I should cool my heart and not rush the process.
Sticky Rice 
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