Slowing Down & Just Being

by Rachel Edwards (’23)

I recently rediscovered one of Rupi Kaur’s poems that reads, “i will never have / this version of me again / let me slow down / and be with her.” I have thought a lot about these words in the month we have been in D.C. so far. I genuinely can’t even believe that a month has passed by. However, I am trying my best to slow down and be present in this part of my life. I keep thinking about how lucky our cohort is to be together and how life changing this semester already feels. I think about how lucky we are to be able to travel within this city at a moment’s notice, eat at the most amazing restaurants, and explore the beautiful places that D.C. has to offer. While it is bittersweet to know that I won’t have this version of me again, it is also a constant reminder to just do all the things, as some might say, while I can.

I am interning at National Peace Corps Association (NPCA) this semester as their advocacy intern. I’m honestly not very fond of the 7:30 AM wake-up call that comes most days of the week, but I have become incredibly fond of the work that NPCA is doing. This week, we celebrated the 60th anniversary of the Peace Corps Act. Most of my work leading up to this week entailed outreach to congressional offices and affiliate groups that support the Peace Corps, and it was gratifying to see so many people post about the Peace Corps on social media this week after the hundreds of emails I sent out last week. Joe Kennedy III—former congressman and great-nephew of President John F. Kennedy—joined us on Wednesday to speak with Bill Moyers and Bill Josephson, two men who were the driving forces of the Peace Corps’ inception. It was special to hear all these people talk about their individual experiences with the Peace Corps because they speak about the agency’s importance and impact with such conviction, which I think is a testament to the character of the Peace Corps and its Volunteers over the last 60 years.

The part of this semester that I am especially trying to slow down and figuratively “be with” is the weekend. Working full-time during the week and having speakers or excursions on Fridays makes Saturday and Sunday somewhat precious to enjoy. As a wildly extroverted person, I have relished in the moments where I am not staring at my computer screen but rather having face-to-face interactions with my friends. This weekend, Zac and I spent a day at the National Museum of American History, which happens to be my favorite Smithsonian and one that Zac had not yet been to. I hadn’t been to the museum since high school, so seeing the exhibits again felt refreshing and reminded me of how much history has created our current moment. Not to mention, having Zac, who enjoys museums just as much as I do, with me made our hours looking at artifacts and reading descriptions even more fulfilling. To end the day, we sat at a Shake Shack in a beautiful neighborhood we had never been in and just watched people walk by, all independently enjoying their own Saturdays.

I’ve been reflecting often about what this semester is meaning to me as it rolls on. What I am realizing is that one day I will talk about these few months as a Wake Washington student and miss every bit of it. I may still be getting used to working all week and taking classes at night, but I know I will miss this feeling of adulthood when the semester ends. As such, to Rupi Kaur’s point, I really am trying to slow down and be with this version of myself. This is the version of myself that gets to intern with NPCA and learn about things I would never have the opportunity to be involved in otherwise. This is the version of myself that gets to run to catch the metro and walk blocks and blocks just to feel like I’m in an entirely different world. This is the version of myself who has the pleasure to briefly write about what I am doing this semester to share with so many others through this blog. Ultimately, for all these versions and all that are to come in the next two and half months, I am just so grateful to be living in them now.