Dear readers,
20.02.2020 is a very special day for the organisation I'm working at. Today, we are going to celebrate its 15th anniversary. And that's definitely a very positive fact! As a former volunteer in an NGO, I support and encourage young people like me to go abroad for some months of volunteering.
You can meet new people, improve your abilities and discover new skills that you didn't even expect to have, get out of your comfort zone, be involved in new challenges, discover a new country and its culture, and travel a lot... it looks too good to be true, doesn't it?
Well, in this post, I will share with you some considerations about doing a voluntary service abroad, and opinions from people who have been involved in a volunteering project before - I'll try to give you some insights about the pros and cons of being a volunteer, and speak about what you can do, and what you can learn.
But, wait a second...
what is volunteering?
When I was younger, the word volunteering made me immediately think about kind and caring actions, such as taking care of elderly people, or helping in a soup kitchen. Else, my thoughts would've gone straight to much bigger tasks, like working in refugee camps in some remote countries.
My old self was satisfied with those explanations, and never investigated further. I never considered that it could be something different. And I never thought about being a volunteer.
But, as I shared in this post, coincidences do not exist (or maybe they do?! - read that post to know more about this conflict in my perception of things). Thus, right after quitting my first job, I started meeting a lot of people who were involved in some kind of volunteering projects. They described their experience as inspiring, interesting, and unique. I felt that it was the right moment for me to get involved in those projects, and I started looking for opportunities. That's how I got to know Erasmus+ and European Solidarity Corps programme.
To make it short, I found a volunteering project in Bulgaria with a NGO - in a little, pretty village in the Pirin mountains - and I lived the most amazing year of my life, and I had the best experience ever - a life-changing experience.
I worked with kids, people with disabilities, locals, met a lot of new people, made new and long-lasting friendships, and travelled a lot! It's so hard to summarize 9 months of
volunteering in few sentences - maybe pictures can explain that better :-)
That's why I encourage all of you, guys, to consider this opportunity - if you want to have a gap semester (or year), if you are tired of what you're (or you're not!) doing, if you have some free time, if you want to do something meaningful and help people... there's plenty of reasons to start a volunteering project, but the first rule is: tune in to your desires and passions, and let your decision be led by your emotional part. Don't be too rational!
What you can get in return, is priceless.
When you do something to help people, and people smile back at you, you feel good. When a kid says "thank you" you realize that those things that for you are small details, can really make children happy.
I have asked some of my friends that I met during the last, amazing, unforgettable year, what are the pros and cons of volunteering and I must say, that the amount of pros definitely overcomes the cons!
First of all, you will have more freedom, and the opportunity to work in a foreign country and to get to know a new culture, different habits and lifestyles. Sometimes, to overcome your problems or to simply feel better, you need to change your routine or live in a totally different environment for a while - actually, I have met several people who told me they started a volunteering project to get over someone. And they found a new love!
There's not only this - you can work for a good cause, and feel really useful for the society. And this is something really fulfilling. You will learn gratitude: to hear "thank you" from people you work with, or create something for, is a beautiful feeling. Honestly. I have experienced this many times and it made me appreciate the importance of being grateful.
You have a lot of freedom - your schedule is not fixed, you don't have a boss to whom you have to explain why you were not working eight hours per day, and you receive total support to develop your own personal project. Just be creative, and you can do whatever you have always dreamed to do! That's how I started giving Italian lessons to Bulgarians (and I learned a bit of Bulgarian in return - you see? You give and you get!); that's how a friend of mine, still volunteering in Bulgaria, was able to organize the event she dreamed of - a festival about graffiti, painting, live music and good vibes in a park in the center of Sofia. Here's some of the projects a volunteer can work on: intercultural events, workshops about almost everything (from cooking, painting, to jewelry, juggling and even ugly Christmas sweater workshop!), live music, documentary screenings, public talks, social events (cleaning natural environments, Easter and Cristhmas markets, upcycling and recycling). And I'd have plenty of other stories to share... I guarantee that when you are free and let your imagination flow, exciting ideas com to your mind!
As I already mentioned, you have the opportunity to meet a lot of new people - in most cases, these people are living an experience very similar to yours: in this way, it's much easier to connect with them, and to find common interests, ideas, projects and objectives! I witnessed many new cooperations between people that have met during their volunteering service. Furthermore, I've seen many people staying in the country the have volunteered in, after their project came to an end - they found a job there and they are really happy.
Last but not least, you will have the chance to improve your self-confidence, communication and organizational skills, and become more aware of your human and professional value.
It seems like volunteering has some kind of power and you can magically transform your life - but it's not like this! There are some negative aspects I'd like to share with you.
First of all, being homesick. Sometimes, this is the first experience abroad or away from your family, and it's normal to feel a bit melancholic about the friends you have left, the family, or even the little things, like your favourite food or bar. But, believe me, the more you travel, the more chance you have to discover a new favourite food or bar ;-)
Then, financial limitation. Volunteering is not a proper job - you get a pocket money which most of the times is enough for the whole month - and if you are careful, you can get some savings too. But for sure you can't afford the same lifestyle of a regular employee. But maybe you can get to realize that less is more, and you will start to buy only the things you really need.
Language barrier - I want to share a funny fact that happened to me during my first month in Bulgaria. It was a lazy Sunday and I didn't feel like cooking, so I went to a pizza place and decided to ask for a pizza. I wanted to practice my Bulgarian, and get more confident in my communication in a foreign language. That's why I asked, in Bulgarian, for the pizza that was labeled as "number four" in the menu. The lady asked something to me back, and I just repeated "four, four, yes" (all in Bulgarian). She replied something to me and I just nodded. She laughed and said something to her colleague, and I felt a bit weird, because I thought she was making fun of me. Nevermind, I just kept waiting for my pizza (and I was getting pretty hungry, actually). Thirty minutes later, the lady called me - you can imagine what a great feeling to have your food after waiting for so long! I was ready to take my pizza and eat it, when I realized that... there were four pizzas! You can imagine my face when I realized what I had done - I had just ordered four pizzas. Four pizzas to eat there, not to take away! That's why the lady was laughing at me. Well, luckily I had enough money to pay for the pizzas and my flatmates were pretty hungry, but since then I started to be more careful when communicating in Bulgarian.
Funny fact, after that, the place became known as "Cetiri pizza" (four pizzas) among me and my friends. This story is a funny anecdote. After that, I decided to study Bulgarian - now I wouldn't make those mistakes again. Jokes aside, knowing useful words and sentences in the language of the country you are living in is very useful - not everyone speaks English. Believe me, if you manage to communicate with local people you feel really great, and locals really appreciate people who try to speak their language.
And - as you can see in the picture - I've been thinking of that pizzas for a while!
Another problem that may arise during a voluntary service project is frustration. Sometimes you work 24/7, sometimes you have a lot of free time and you can get really bored. But, please, don't give up! That's life. It's normal to experience up and downs. Just, don't let them affect you. If you are focused on your project and know what you want to achieve, and you are really committed to it, you will eventually accept that you have to do some sacrifices - working a lot, sometimes, and not working at all, other days. This is a thing that, according to me, is still not accepted by many people who are doing a voluntary service. Sometimes, we want to achieve everything now, and do not accept that we have to be patient and work hard for obtaining a very small change. It is so frustrating to see that the work you are doing is not affecting people in the way you expected to, but...
wait a second...
did I say expectations?
Yes, I did.
Well, what if we focus on what people really perceive, and not on our expectations? Maybe our actions are affecting people much more than we think - we simply do not realize they did, because we are leaning on our expectations.
To conclude, it seems like, if we are mature and receptive enough, we can make the most of a volunteering experience abroad. Improve new skills, meet new people, learn a foreign language, have fun and travel a lot!
But here comes the hardest question... what to do after volunteering? Well, there are cases in which people already know what they are going to do after those gap months - study at University, start a new job - but many other people don't have clear in mind what they want to do. Anyway, most of the people experience a very common feeling, which is, coming back home and feeling out of place. Sometimes because things haven't changed at all, while they have experienced a huge transformation, sometimes because things are different - they discover that their favourite bar is no longer as cool as before, or that new people are hanging out at the pub they used to go before. But, things come and go: that's the beauty of life, after all.
Well, everytime we are at a turning point, it's very hard to make a choice without being influenced by an inner turmoil... fear, depression, contrasting feelings, joy, nostalgia... but, I guess that after every experience, you'll become a bit more aware of your strengths and know how to value yourself and to find the right thing to do.
So guys, if you have never done such an experience and you got curious after reading this post, my advice for today is to ask yourself a question:
am I really ready for a volunteering experience and what do I want to gain from it?
Ask yourself this question, listen to your heart, and answer sincerely: you will get the right answer.
And if you found this post nice, sweet, motivating, inspiring, or useful, don't hesitate to share it with your friends. Maybe, among them there's someone who doesn't know about the opportunity of volunteering abroad.
Warm hugs.
Claudia
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