All Roads Lead to Rome

Well I guess in my case its a flight to Rome - darn sight faster than driving!

I guess what they say about all roads leading to Rome is true, but no one told me it would be such an arduous road to travel. Last week I got told I could head off on my African Adventure and join the rest of the team on the World Food Program.

After much deliberations with the Boss he finally said I could join the rest of the World Food Program in Rome for training with the rest of the people who are going onto other WFP projects around the world. This all happened on Thursday afternoon and I am leaving for Rome on Sunday the 2nd of March.

Even as today draws to a close I still have loads to do. Panic has not really set in yet, nor have I had much time to think about what lies ahead for me. One thing I do know is what lies ahead of me will make me stronger and will change me for the good. It has already started to do so. I have already had to find a bit of inner strength in myself.

I used the word arduous just now to describe my metaphoric road that I have had to travel the past few weeks and I am still on this week. I don't kid myself that I will still be on it for the next 24 weeks as I have a lot to do and archive in them weeks. Dictionary.com has a great description of this word - Arduouse


ar·du·ous Spelled Pronunciation[ahr-joo-uhs or, especially Brit., ahr-dyoo-]
–adjective
1.Requiring great exertion; laborious; difficult: an arduous undertaking.
2.Requiring or using much energy and vigor; strenuous: making an arduous effort.
3.Hard to climb; steep: an arduous path up the hill.
4.Hard to endure; full of hardships; severe: an arduous winter.
[Origin: 1530–40]


My last few weeks have most defiantly been all of the above. I have been very lucky to have some very understanding friends and work colleagues who have helped me keep it together the past two weeks.

I have been aiming to have a project completed by the 29th but it has been plagued with problems. Just about every time I look at it I have found something amiss with it. It would seem that pressure has all manor of effects on people some more positive than others. But these pressures have also highlighted who the team players are and who is not. Its just a pity to find that the people you think you can count on are not always the ones you can. But its still nice to know I have some firm rocks I can lean against to help me when I have lost direction.

As for the project and it being completed on the 29th before I depart. I think it will be. If not it will just need a bit of smoothing off around the edges and someone else can take the glory of my hard work and roll it out for me.

I fly off to Rome on Sunday the 2nd of March then onward to South Africa the following Saturday arriving Sunday the 9th or March

I am still looking forward to getting out to South Africa and to help make a little bit of a change to many and a very big change to me.