A few weeks are missing at the end of her experience and Noemi, a volunteer in Portugal, as part of the project “R.A.Y Resilience Across Youth” has chose to share with us reflections and sensations that this path has given her:
” I arrived in Aveiro on April 27th, full of excitement, fears, expectations and anxieties. Immediately I was put at ease, included in the work environment, and in terms of choosing how to best develop the project, based on my inclinations, skills, and needs. Initially, not knowing the possibilities at my disposal and not knowing what tasks I could perform, my week was organized so that I could measure myself and experiment in various areas.
After a few weeks my role in the organization was clear to me and I was ready to give my best. I work from Monday to Friday, from 9:00 am to 6:00 pm, in a space called “Parque dos Talendos”, where we organize events related to theater, music and social and cultural animation. Having worked in theater for some years now, I have been involved in a collaborative project with an elementary school in a neighboring city, in which lessons of movement and basic interpretation for children have been proposed. I am also able to put into practice a Theater project written by me, for children with special needs. This is broadly what I am dealing with.
Regarding the accommodation, I’m living in a really delightful two-story apartment, located near the work place, spacious and well-maintained, which I share with 4 other wonderful volunteers with whom we have created an excellent relationship based on respect and sharing.
It is interesting to radically change your daily habits, from one day to the next find yourself placed in a totally different environment in which you get used day by day, until you come to think that this has always been my life. For this reason I can hardly realize that in three months I will return to my city, to resume what I gave up to take advantage of this opportunity.
These six months have been rich, I have been nourished by full and satisfying days, I have found a splendid balance with the surrounding environment, I have known many people that I will carry inside of me and with whom I will surely maintain lasting contacts. It has been and continues to be for me an experience in which I am discovering and facing fears, in which I am learning to take myself less seriously, to do my best, in which I feel the need to expose my needs and at the same time adapt. Communicating, sharing.
I arrive at the end of the article renewing my enthusiasm and satisfaction, and inviting young people to take this journey full of surprises, with the right psycho-physical predisposition, knowing that there is so much to receive and so much to give.”
