March 22, 2009; I arrived at Washington DC Dulles International Airport with my travelling bags headed for a place I called “sweet home”. As I drove past where I received my first traffic violation for speeding; where I first went to church, where I first got off and on the Metro rail, the Capitol Building, the White House, the Washington national’s baseball and basketball team stadiums– I was filled with mixed emotions, but still very excited.
I arrived at the Airport by 4pm, went through with checking my luggage, and waited few minutes before going through security. As I approached the security checkpoint, I began to shed tears, knowing that I was finally leaving the United States. To leave a country which I have come to call home for the past 10 years was something difficult to do. Knowing full well that I was traveling to a country barely emerging from 14 years of conflict was a difficult reality to accept.
As I prepared myself to board the flight, I knew that life would never be the same. However, the joy of returning home to contribute my own little part towards Liberia’s post-conflict reconstruction efforts was worth the sacrifice. To serve as a peace educator, investing in Liberia’s most important human resource – its youthful population – in order to reap a peaceful future nation was a challenge that I personally refused to give up.
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