Destination Confirmed

Finally, after more than three months of waiting to hear where we'll be going in Mexico, Comexus, the Mexican committee connected with the Fulbright, assigned me my teaching post. I will be teaching English to young adults at the Universidad Politécnica Francisco I. Madero in the state of Hidalgo. This is a community college just outside of the very small town of San Agustín, population approximately 11,000. In the coming days I will hear from my contact at the school who will help me arrange housing, but I'm thinking that Jon and I will look for a place in the nearby town of Actopan, which is larger, only about twenty minutes from the school (hopefully, there's a bus), and looks like it has more possibility for rentals (the Fulbright provides a monthly amount to cover housing and living expenses, but it's up to us to secure the accommodations). 

I'm simultaneously excited and daunted by this assignment. Part of me imagined being placed in some charming little town full of colorful buildings and a bustling town square. Part of me imagined being in a rural village composed of a series of shacks with no running water. San Agustín seems to be somewhere in between. Actopan looks like it will be closer to the charm and bustle scenario. Regardless, it turns out that part of me is glad I'll be in a place that's neither a touristy small town nor a busy large city. 

I'm sure it will be a huge adjustment for both me and Jon (and the cat). Yes, we are used to certain creature comforts. I hope that we can learn to live without the things we're used to and enjoy the adventure of new surroundings, new foods, new acquaintances, etc. More than anything, I expect to be extremely fulfilled by the teaching experience, and by the challenge of making my research project work in such a remote area (connecting with emerging female writers and supporting them in their literary process). I think we're ready for anything the experience throws at us. I hope I'm right! 

A Lesson in Patience

Three months of riding high on the anticipation of my trip to Mexico on the Fulbright scholarship has devolved into an exercise in patience. I had expected to find out where in Mexico I was going to be assigned no later than mid-June. It was hard enough to wait until then. But mid-June came and went and still no word. I finally got an email saying that the assignments were taking a little longer than expected, but that we would know soon. Then another email arrived saying the process was still under way and that we would know for sure no later than mid-July.  Now, I'm freaking out. Or, rather, trying very hard not to. I always knew this undertaking would be a bit of a leap of faith, but that faith, and patience, is definitely being put to the test. 

At least we are able to settle the details of getting our house rented and prepared for our long absence while we drum our fingers and wonder where we'll be living in Mexico for nine months. Relatives are planning to visit, friends are planning vacations to come see us there, but we have no idea where "there" is. 

This is a challenge to my ability to remain calm, that's for sure. I'm a pretty organized person, and I like to settle plans as far in advance as possible. Is this experience a test for me? I would say most definitely it is. There will probably be more tests of various kinds once the journey finally gets under way. In the meantime, I pray for patience while I really do trust that it will all turn out exactly right in the end. 

The Moment of Truth

I'd been preparing for this moment for almost a year: a year of writing, re-writing, and re-writing again my personal statement and statement of purpose, answering in-depth application questions, and pulling together recommendations. Then comes the first interview with the Fulbright committee at Portland State. I Nail it. They recommend me to the Fulbright international committee in New York who send me to the semi-finals round. The second interview is with the Mexican committee. I Nail it. Then I wait. I check my emails obsessively several times a day for three weeks.

Just when I've resigned myself to more waiting, at two o'clock in the afternoon on Friday, March 25th, 2022, I check my email for the hundredth time that day, and I see it in my inbox: FULBRIGHT U.S. STUDENT PROGRAM APPLICATION UPDATE. 

My heart starts to pound. I open the email and see the link that will take me to my application. I click it. For weeks I've been practicing creative visualization: thinking positive thoughts and picturing this trip happening. In this moment though, I doubt all of it. "They're going to say no. They're going to say no," is all I can think. On my application page, I see this: A DECISION LETTER IS NOW AVAILABLE. CLICK HERE. I'm alone in my living room. My husband, Jon, is out. My heart thudding in my ears, I click that link. Hardly believing what I'm seeing, I read these words: 

Dear Ms. Young-Ellis:

On behalf of the Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board, I am pleased to congratulate you on your selection for a Fulbright award to Mexico for academic year 2022-2023.

It goes on for four more paragraphs: all about the history of the Fulbright, how the recipients have gone to achieve great things, winning Pulitzers and Nobel Prizes and everything else but all I can think, through my sobs and tears, is: I did it. I did it. And I hate to say this, but, honestly, I needed the win. I needed to achieve something that to me felt bigger than the acting roles I've had, the books I've published, the degrees I've earned, even the excellent child I've raised, and the loving marriage I've maintained for 34 years. 

I call Jon. I'm sobbing. He's laughing. He'll be home soon. I call my mom. We're both crying and laughing. I continue to make phone calls and send texts, reading the letter over and over to be sure it's real. I still don't know where in Mexico I'm going, but I will be teaching English and doing a research project (more on that later) there for about 9 months, husband and cat in tow. 

Jon comes home bearing flowers and champagne. We make reservations at our favorite restaurant. There's lots and lots of planning to do and things to arrange, but, for now, it's all joy. 

I can't wait to see where this amazing opportunity will take us.