I’m here. After over a year of planning, I am finally here on Idjwi in the Democratic Republic of Congo. It feels strangely surreal while also completely natural. I’m the only American on the island and 95% of the time, I am in a place where not a soul speaks English; and yet I feel incredibly connected to the people around me and it feels like I am meeting a huge family that I never knew I had. In all fairness, I did not come here with such high expectations. My fears had no