6 months already!
I can hardly believe it has been this long, yet here I am, looking back at so many beautiful things that I have to convince myself it wasn't a dream! All these workshops, fellow volunteers teaching each other something of their own, all these hours of working with the children, developing myself as I witness them develop themselves...
In the summer, I have been swimming in the lakes of Bratislava, enjoying the warm weather with a cold beer in one hand and a delicious langoš in the other. The image is from an event we had. We let our kids paint our walls with graffiti and had live music performed!
During the summer, I went to another town in Slovakia to meet with other volunteers for our mid-term training, which was immensely educational and fun! I went to a cottage near the lake with my colleagues and our children, played games and swam with them, and the smiles we got were worth all the effort we put into it! Last week I even went to another country for a seminar, as part of my job. I wasn't expecting such a thing to happen, when I applied to come here. The things I learned, the fun I had, the people I met... I can only describe the experience as unique. A day in the life of a volunteer can be many things, but certainly not boring.
I have also begun thinking more in detail about my personal project (something about meditation and the arts... Shh) and I will implement it within the following month. There really are no words to explain my feelings, but I think I'll try it with a short poem, enjoy!
Autumn is upon us, now, and rain and clouds abound.
The pigeons find their shelters high, above the humid ground.
The looks, the smiles, they never end, in harder times, indeed.
How beautiful a time it is to plant a knowledge seed.
Some friends have gone, others have stayed, but I'm still going strong.
My head up high, my eyes alight, my thoughts are filled with song.
So far, still, the horizon, but the end seems closing in.
This world is now a better place, I look around and grin!
Text a foto: Lazaros Antoniou
Lazaros je dobrovoľník na projekte Európske zbory solidarity v občianskom združení Ulita. Projekt bol podporený z projektu EÚ Európsky zbor solidarity.