Whew. It has been a MONTH! I feel like everything is happening so quickly I don’t have time to soak it all in, and I’m so afraid I’m going to forget all of these wonderful, incredible sights and experiences I’m so lucky to have.
One thing I won’t ever forget, though, is my host family.
These people have already been so kind, wonderful, welcoming and generous, I know I will never, ever forget them.
And it’s only been a month since I’ve known them!
I loved Olga, Sasha, Masha and Roma at my training site of Zhytomyr, and while I wish I could have lived with them for the rest of service (and also, maybe, the rest of ever), I knew that living with them was going to be temporary.
However, my relationship with my new host family — the Ganahs — will be a little more long-term.
I’m required to live with my host family for three full months. After that, I can either stay if it’s mutually agreed upon, or I can move out and into independent housing.
I haven’t thought that far ahead yet (look at me, adapting to Ukrainian culture), but I can say for sure that I’m gonna love every second of my remaining time in the Ganah household.
Peace Corps did a really great job of selecting my host family for me. There’s a pretty rigorous inspection and interview process that Peace Corps does prior to signing off and allowing a PCV to move in.
Before I left our Transition to Service conference, I was given a look at a host family checklist that detailed my future living situation a bit more. It included info about my commute to work, the family members, the neighborhood safety and security, household language, my bedroom furnishings, etc.
I knew RIGHT away that Peace Corps did its homework when assigning me a host family. Iryna is a journalist?! NAILED IT.
I first met my host family really late at night when I got to Khmelnytskyi via train with my counterpart Oksana after I formally swore in as a PCV, so it was a little awkward. I was tired and just wanted to sleep.
However, Mama Natasha and Vanya did everything they could to make me feel comfortable and welcome. They gave me food and a quick tour and sent me to bed.
While my host family checklist lists the four Ganah family members, I’m currently living with two: “Mama” Natasha and Ivan, AKA: Vanya.
Mama Natasha is a businesswoman who sells wedding and home accessories at our local bazaar. She’s crazy talented! She can sew and craft and bead and do all sorts of insane things I could never do.
She also hates cooking (but always makes sure I am well-fed), and is so interested in my family and how it differs from hers. She’s so curious about the American woman living in her home, and I really really love that she’s open and receptive to my culture and — rather than express horror that I’m a single 30-year-old woman — she is genuinely interested in knowing how and why.
At one point during my first few weeks here, I started openly crying at the kitchen table (hey, living in a new country is HARD), and she tried her best to comfort me and reassure me and tell me how strong I am. At one point, she delicately asked if she could hug me and I said “yes,” and she came over and just let me cry all over her. Then, SHE started crying! She explained that during her “orientation-to-hosting-an-American,” per say, she was told “DO NOT TOUCH YOUR AMERICAN!” Ukrainians don’t have the same concept of personal space that Americans are accustomed to, so apparently it was drilled into her head that she was not, under any circumstances, to touch her American.
Of course, I laughed, and told her she’s always welcome to hug me. Now she does. Often. She also fixes my hair, pulls up my zipper, dusts off my clothes. She’s a typical Ukrainian mother and she is SO, SO wonderful!
And Vanya. Ohhhh Vanya!
I don’t even know where to start with Vanya. He’s also one of my students at Gymnasium No. 2, so I get a lot of quality time with Vanya.
He’s so, so funny. Ukrainians aren’t really known for their sarcasm, but Vanya has self-deprecating humor ON LOCK. He loves video games, fat cats and memes. He’s not embarrassed by me or his mom or his family like American pre-teens would be, and instead, he’s really proud to be the kid in his school with the American sister. He walks me to school almost every day and we spend the entire walk groaning «хочу спати» and complaining about how tired we are.
His English is actually really great! Which is really useful sometimes, because my Ukrainian… is not great. He’s so smart and is such a mischievous troublemaker. Mama Natasha loves to “lecture” Vanya, but none of it is ever really serious because he’s such a good kid with a good heart.
In addition to Mama Natasha and Vanya, my host family also includes Ira and Igor. Ira is in her mid-20s, and is a radio journalist working in Kyiv. Because of that, she’s never around too much. I did recently get the chance to meet her, and — while we didn’t take any photos, sadly — she is JUST as cool as the rest of her family. I’m really hoping I get the chance to get to know her more, despite the distance.
Igor is currently working overseas in Equatorial Guinea, doing something military-related. To be honest, I’m not entirely sure what it is that Igor does — blame my poor Ukrainian language comprehension. I do know he’s out on a long-term work assignment, though, and it will be a really long time before I’m able to meet him. That’s actually partially why I’m able to stay with the Ganah family — there’s extra space here and a room for me with Igor being gone for work.
Anyway, that’s my Khmelnytskyi host family! I am so excited I get to spend the next two years building a genuine bond with them. They’re incredible people and I feel so lucky that they’ve welcomed me into their home and treated me like a real part of their family. I’ve only known them for a month and I can already tell I’m going to try my hardest to hold onto them well, well past my two years of service.
This post was originally published Jan. 27, 2022. Its timestamp has been updated to better reflect the timeline of my Peace Corps service.
