Just when I was getting comfortable ...

If my first year of service were a novel, it would start kind of slow. The beginning chapters would be focused on character development and setting, with long paragraphs outlining the curves of the distant hills, the sound of rain on tin roofs, and profiles of the people met along the way.

There would be small conflicts and resolutions creating crests and troughs in the story line. I would play up the embarrassing (but hilarious) condom-breaking-during-demonstration debacle, but still embellish the lazy Sundays spent in the hammock.

For every three steps forward for plot, one step back would be taken for context. There would be laughter and tears. And the climax — the vibrant culmination of a year's worth of integration, confidence building, language skills and lessons learned – would definitely be World AIDS Week.

The end of November/beginning of December has been a whirlwind of preparations, presentations, goodbyes and deep breaths. Five volunteers are leaving this tiny department, and seven more are arriving. With just two of us holding the anchor, it's made for a lot of change.

But the peak will be followed by a hard and fast crash. The rains are coming and school's letting out, giving way to the falling action of Christmas preparations and the abrupt denouement of New Years.

And when life picks up again, maybe a different story will begin. New resolutions will be made. Friendships formed and projects started. Will it be all that different? Could it possibly be the same? Instead of ticking off, I'll be counting down the days I have left in my Peace Corps adventure. And before I know it – they tell me – I'll be back home reminiscing about time spent here.

But for now, it might not be a bad idea to hold still and look back. Revisiting moments both key and mundane. Lamenting the loss of close friends. Smiling at the ones who've stuck around. Shaking my head at the person I'm becoming. Squinting to recognize the person I was.

While, you know, eating mangoes and swinging on the hammock ... prepping for Volume Two.