Ta konec tedna nas je, nekoliko prej, kot je bilo pričakovano zapustil prostovoljec Evropske solidarnostne enote Jordi. Dobil je službo v Španiji. In še preden se je vrnil domov, je strnil vtise svoje prostovoljske izkušnje. Jordi, srečno!
Življenje nas včasih pelje po nepričakovanih poteh. Če bi mi nekdo nekaj mesecev nazaj povedal, da bom opravljal prostovoljno delo v mladinskem centru v Domžalah, bi verjetno dvignil obrv in mu ne bi verjel. Sedaj, po štirih neverjetnih in bogatih mesecih v Domžalah, vidim, kako se moje življenje znova spreminja. Zaradi službene priložnosti se predčasno vračam v Španijo. To, kar naj bi bil moj četrti mesec opravljanja prostovoljnega dela v okviru Evropske solidarnostne enote, se je spremenil v zadnjega. Poglejmo nazaj in ocenimo mojo prostovoljsko izkušnjo v Domžalah.
Počutim se zelo razdvojeno. Imam občutek, da so zadnji štirje meseci minili kot bi trenil, hkrati pa komaj verjamem, da sem tukaj le štiri mesece. V tem času sem spoznal veliko neverjetnih ljudi, imel sem priložnost spoznati državo, ki se včasih zdi kot iz pravljice, in doživel veliko dragocenih trenutkov pri delu v mladinskem centru. Bodimo iskreni, vsak dan in vsaka naloga nista bila razburljiva (kar je pričakovano), vendar ko se ozrem nazaj in pomislim na vse, dobim vtis, da je bil vsak dan dragocen in izpopolnjujoč na nek način.
Delo v CZM je bilo neverjetno doživetje. Imel sem priložnost se osredotočiti na stvari, ki so mi najbolj pomembne, hkrati pa sem bil spodbujen, da preizkusim tudi druge stvari. To ne bi bilo mogoče brez neverjetnih ljudi, ki so mi nudili podporo – ekipe CZM: Tjaše, Tine, Tinkare, Klavdije in Mateje. Hvaležen sem, da sem jim lahko pomagal pri izvajanju prostočasnih aktivnosti, ki so bile vključujoče in so imel svoj namen. Veliko sem se naučil od njih in jim želim, tako kot mladinskemu centru kot celoti, veliko uspeha pri prihodnjih prizadevanjih.
Kar zadeva delo z mladimi, imam nekaj pomislekov. Izhajam iz tehničnega in inženirskega okolja in nisem imel nobenih izkušenj z delom z velikimi skupinami mladih, zato je bil to velik izziv. Med svojim delom sem se zelo potrudil, da bi pripravil zabavna in bogata doživetja, ki bi bile vključujoča. Imel sem občutek, da aktivnosti, ki so se odvijale, niso vedno zadostile interesov vseh. Čeprav se mi je zdelo, da bi aktivnosti, ki sem jih pripravil, lahko zapolnile vrzel, niso vedno delovale, kot sem si želel. Moral sem se spodbujati in soočati s frustracijo, ker nekatere aktivnosti in delavnice, kljub načrtovanju in trudu, niso pritegnile veliko zanimanja. Hkrati pa sem cenil in slavil stvari, ki so prestale izziv in bile zanimive. Oboje mislim, da je prispevalo k temu, da je bila ta izkušnja res vredna in enega brez drugega ne bi bilo.
Vračam se v Španijo s prepričanjem, da sem sprejel pravilno odločitev, ko sem se odločil za prostovoljstvo v Sloveniji. Menim, da mi je Evropska solidarnostna enota omogočila, da sem si zgradil veliko mrežo prijateljev, me usposobila in nudila podporo pri dobrem počutju in doseganju ciljev, tako projektnih kot lastnih. Za vse, ki se odločate, ali se pridružiti ali ne, mislim, da je odločitev zelo enostavna. Ne samo, da imaš priložnost oditi v tujino, dobiti zadostno denarno podporo in delati na nečem, kar daje smisel tebi in lokalni skupnosti, ki te gosti, ampak ti omogoča tudi osebno in profesionalno rast. Pridobiš veščine, ki so prenosljive – izboljšaš komunikacijske veščine, se naučiš jezika, samoevalvacije ter upravljanja s časom in viri. Če bi se moral odločiti še enkrat, ne bi zamudil te priložnosti, ampak bi se zanjo odločil še prej.
Life sometimes takes us through unexpected paths. If someone had told me a few months back that I would be volunteering in a youth center in Domžale, I would probably have raised an eyebrow as a disbelief sign. Now, after four incredible and rewarding months in Domžale, I see my life shattering again as I see myself set for an early return to Spain to pursue a job opportunity. What was meant to be my fourth month in Slovenia as an European Solidarity Corps volunteer ended up becoming my last, so let’s take a look back and take stock of my experience volunteering in Domžale.
I feel very conflicted because I feel like time has flown by in the last four months and, at the same time, I can’t believe it’s only been four months. During this time I’ve met a lot of amazing people, I’ve had the chance to get to know a country that sometimes feels like something out of a fairy tale, and I’ve had a lot of valuable and rewarding experiences working in a youth center. I’ll be honest, not every day or every task was exciting (and that’s to be expected) but when I look back and take everything into consideration, I get the impression that every day was enriching and valuable in some way.
Working at CZM has been an incredible experience where I have had the opportunity to focus on the things I find the most valuable, but have also been encouraged to branch out and try other things. This would not be possible without the amazing and supportive people who make up the CZM team: Tjaša, Tina, Tinkara, Klavdija, and Mateja. I am deeply grateful for the opportunity to join them in their mission to provide meaningful and inclusive leisure opportunities for the community of Domžale. I have learned a lot from them and wish them and the Youth Centre as a whole every success in their future endeavours.
Regarding youth work, I have some thoughts. Coming from a technical and engineering background and having no experience working with large groups of youngsters was a big challenge at first. During my work here I have tried my best to provide them with fun and enriching experiences from an inclusive perspective, as I felt that sometimes the activities that were going on didn’t always meet everyone’s interests. Although I think sometimes the ideas I came up with could fill these gaps, the execution did not always work as I would have liked. I had to psych myself up to deal with the frustration of some activities and workshops not attracting much interest despite the planning and effort put into them, but also to appreciate and celebrate the things that did manage to meet the hard challenge of being compelling. Both stages ultimately provide valuable experience, and, in a way, I think you can’t have one without the other.
I am returning to Spain with the conviction that I made the correct decision when I decided to come to Slovenia. I feel that the European Solidarity Corps has provided me with an extensive network, training, and support focused on my well-being and the achievement of the project’s and my own goals. To anyone who might be wondering whether or not to join, I think it’s a very simple decision: not only do you get the opportunity to go abroad, receive fair economic support, and work on something meaningful for you and your hosting community, but you will also grow both as a person and as a professional through the acquisition of transferable skills such as communication, language, self-evaluation or time and resource management. In fact, not only would I not miss this opportunity if I had to do it all over again, I’d have probably done it sooner.
