EVS - killed time or filled time?
You can’t learn about life from a textbook.
I’m personally and profoundly a promoter of the opinion that you can’t learn about life from a textbook. You also can’t learn about it stuck behind a desk in some 9 to 5 job. So why is it that more people don’t jump on the amazing opportunity that is EVS?
Maybe it’s the fear of the unknown, maybe it’s the pressure to do what’s expected of you, or maybe people just aren’t aware of the alternatives on offer. Either way, most tend to follow the familiar, well-walked path from school to university to a full-time job, at furthest detouring to an internship along the way. Perhaps there is nothing wrong with this, except that if you continue to follow the sheltered path, you could find yourself completely unprepared for the day you step out into the open and realise it’s raining! That’s why I’ve decided to take the scenic route. The one lying just outside my comfort zone.
This little adventure of mine has already led me into unknown territory. After 7 and a half years of learning French I decided to go to Germany. After swearing that I would never become a teacher (like half the other females in my family) I ended up in a school. And after a lifetime of uncertainty about what to do with my future...well I still have another 4 months to reach that junction!
Around cultural corners I’ve seen unexpected sights - such as giant nutcrackers, a beer glass as big as my head and dinosaurs made out of pumpkins.
I’ve discovered hidden skills such as self-confidence, patience and how to communicate in the common language of frantic hand signals.
But most importantly, my path has led me to some pretty amazing people! People whose passion and strength have helped them overcome all obstacles. These trailblazers have become my inspiration and my courage so that even now, as I reach a fork in the road where I must say goodbye to the person I love and we go on our separate ways, I know that I will have the strength to make it to the end on my own.
I may still have a long way to go but if I had to put a label on my journey so far it would neither be ‘filled time’ nor ‘killed time’ but rather ‘fulfilled time’.