It’s the oldest cliché in the book: “The Peace Corps changed my life.” And yet, like most clichés, it’s absolutely true.
I think of all the movies and TV shows where a bright-eyed American shows up in a remote village in West Africa, armed with idealism and granola bars, determined to “help.” It’s a ridiculous image, honestly. But what an idea. That idea hooked me. I pictured myself gallivanting around the globe, picking up languages, solving real problems, making a difference.
Then, of course, reality hit like an unexpected outpouring of rain in Gambia.
The moment you arrive in your village, you realize how little you understand. You have no clue what you’re doing. The problems are more complex than any development textbook could have warned you about. And, let’s be honest: it was naïve to think you were there to “save” anyone.
That’s when the real learning begins.
There’s an old Peace Corps saying: “The people change you more than you change them.” It’s repeated so often, it starts to feel like a mantra. But it’s true. Deeply, achingly true. So, here it is—my humble contribution to the Peace Corps canon. A story not of how I changed the world, but of how the world changed me. Here are four ways the Peace Corps rewired my entire life:
1. I Met the Love of My Life at a Dusty Bus Stop
It sounds like the opening line of a Desi drama, but it’s real. We were both medical school dropouts trying to figure out our next steps. Two confused souls on the same continent, running away from one life and stumbling into another. We met at a bus stop between our two villages, and that one unexpected moment changed everything.
There are a thousand alternate realities where we never met—if I had been denied medical clearance (I was close), or if he had flown back home to care for his sick mother. But we were both there. And now, years later, we’re married. My husband—my person—is reason number one.
2. I Discovered My Calling in International Relations
Until the Peace Corps, diplomats were just names in articles or blurry figures in press conferences. But at our Close of Service conference, real-life American diplomats showed up and talked to us about careers in foreign policy. That moment lit something in me. It was also when I realized I love being overseas. The buzz, the cultural code-switching, the thrill of figuring life out in a completely new context—it was like a dopamine drip I never wanted to unplug. That experience launched my entire international career.
3. I Found a Second Family in My Host Village
In Gambisara, I wasn’t just a volunteer—I was a daughter, a sister, a part of a family that welcomed me without hesitation. My host family took me in with warmth and humor and patience. They taught me more than I can put into words. We still talk on WhatsApp. I’ve watched Fatou, my host sister, get married and start a family. I marvel at their milestones from afar. Leaving them was one of the hardest days of my life—not just because of the goodbye, but because I was saying farewell to a chapter where I had never felt more alive, more grounded, more me.
4. It Changed the Way I See Absolutely Everything
Immigration. Foreign aid. Race. Individualism. Community. Even the U.S. itself. The Peace Corps reshaped my worldview from the inside out. It gave me nuance. Humility. A new mental framework I carry into every diplomatic meeting and every policy decision I weigh today.It didn’t just change my mind—it changed my body. I still have a scar from a ringworm infection I had on my arm. It’s a strange, slightly gross, totally perfect reminder that this experience left its mark in every way.
From Fatoumata back to Mayeen…
I wasn’t the same person who left the Gambia as the one who arrived. That old version of me—idealistic, restless, uncertain—had no idea what was coming. I grew, painfully and beautifully. I wouldn’t trade the person I’ve become for the person I once was. And I have the Peace Corps—and the people of the Gambia—to thank for that.
In a time when the future of the Peace Corps is uncertain, I find myself reflecting on just how deeply this experience shaped me. I hope we protect it. I hope we keep sending people out into the world not to fix it, but to learn from it.
Because if you’re lucky, it changes everything.
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