In the spirit of full disclosure, Victoria has left her job here in Rundu and moved back to Windhoek with her abusive husband. He called a meeting with both families and she was
basically coerced into staying with him. “It’s sinful to leave your husband” and “in sickness and in health”, they said. She left last night. I found out this morning.
So much for a win.
friedlaughter 
Kimmi, this isn’t about you. This isn’t about your “wins” or “losses.” If you can’t see that, then you’re not helping the people you claim to help.
Rachel, you’re entitled to your opinions, yes, but you’re making blanket assumptions about me that are neither constructive nor warranted. Service is hard enough without the scrutiny and negativity of strangers; next time you want to put someone down, try elsewhere, or better yet, just don’t.
In peace corps (and in life), it is important to celebrate the small victories of progress. Reducing Kimmi’s service experience to “wins” or “losses” is not only incorrect and misguided but also flat out disrespectful. I’m not sure if you’ve read Kimmi’s other posts or are just making your assumptions based on this recent update, but Kimmi is one of the most selfless people I know, and quite frankly, courageous. No one who dedicates two years of their life to service makes it about them. We (especially as women!!!) should be lifting people like Kimmi up and helping them with their fight, not dragging them down.
I don’t think its fair to assume that Kimmi is making this about her. It doesn’t seem like she’s making a “win” or “loss” personal but rather relating it to the difference she hopes to see (or even get a glimpse of) with her time there. In Kimmi’s last post she makes it a point to address that it is Victoria’s strength that led her to stand up for herself and that Kimmi was happy to be a part of her act of courage. She’s in Africa for two years, sacrificing her normal life because she wants to be there. Kimmi keep on doing you. YOU GO GIRL.
The post was to acknowledge the sadness of the experiences that Victoria had to go through. When does Kimmi ever mention herself? She’s fearlessly making her mark on the world and has the right to experience as a win or loss for Victoria or herself. Perhaps it’s you, Rachel, who fails to see the actual point of the post.
I can understand how the lens of wins/losses can distort a person’s view of the bigger picture… But where and when in the telling of Victoria’s story did Kimmi ever imply personal wins, or making herself the focus? In the original post, Kimmi celebrates that her friend Victoria stood up for herself— and that it was Victoria’s own choice to do so. In this post, Kimmi is continuing to support Victoria by telling her story.
Rachel, I’m not sure if you’ve been following Kimmi’s posts regularly or just happened upon this one post, but IMO the ways in which she writes about the community she is serving clearly show that she is coming from a place of deep love, respect, empathy, and a genuine desire to meet people where they’re at. Not a desire to save anyone, not a desire to make personal gains, not anything else with an intent that does more harm than good to the people she is working with.
Kimmi has selflessly given herself over to service-2 and a half years of service. That dedication in of itself, is evident that Kimmi isn’t in this to make it about herself. It’s clear that Kimmi has invested a lot of time in her relationship with Victoria and only cares about continuing to support her in anyway that she can, whether it aligns with what she may personally feel is right or not. You’re entitled to your opinion, Rachel, but consider getting to know Kimmi before you attack her character and the work she is voluntarily doing.
Yes, Rachel is entitled to her opinion, but I must say that I am so glad others agree that the telling of Victoria’s story is not and was never meant to be an attempt at tallying Kimmi’s personal wins or losses.
In my opinion, Kimmi is expressing her own emotions in these posts because she truly cares about the people she is interacting with. It is upsetting that someone would criticize her without further explanation. I am curious to know more about how Rachel came to her conclusion.
With that said, how many of us are making a sacrifice of the same magnitude for the better good of a distant community? We should be encouraging people like Kimmi, not judging them.
Kimmi – I really feel for Victoria. Based on your last post, I sense that her decision was heavily influenced by a fear of society’s judgment and not by her own personal happiness. This is a big loss, even if it only affects the lives of a few. Thank you for putting up a fight. You can’t give up! Let this be a source of motivation. I know it must be hard, but I also know in my heart that you will make the impact you desire if you keep trying.
Love you and miss you tons.