What's special about this person?
My stay as a volunteer in Hungary turns out to be a life-time experience due to the local people, the other volunteers and lastly the journey itself.
Anxious, emotional and curious were some of the feelings I was left with, when I the 1st of September went to Hungary to become a part of the European Voluntary Service program.
As many other EVS volunteers might recognize, I did not exactly know what to expect from the journey, only that it would be a lifetime opportunity to gain intercultural experience and nevertheless . . . learn.
Unexpectedly, this simple little moment of deciding to go to Hungary turned out to unfold as a life-changing experience for many reasons. When I look back at the stay, I therefore look back at all the people who took part of the process – however, to choose one person who can sum-up the whole journey would be the one who I lost my heart too. Mathias, he was another volunteer, together we were a group of 13 youngsters from all over Europe, who took part in a cultural-building and social-ecological project in the village Bordány.
You just know when something feels right, right? That is what I felt when I first entered the project and stood next to Mathias. From the very first minute, our conversation was flowing and from that day on, we just never stopped communicating. Even though Bordány was a small village, I really felt it had endless of possibilities. Our coordinator always said the place could be perceived as a metropolitan and we would all laugh, but deep inside I felt this place was the center of the world. How could it not be? Of all the places in the world, it gifted me a person I have never dreamed would exist. As an individualist, I have never considered the feeling of loneliness – however, to meet someone who reminds you so much of what life is about, makes this feeling more familiar, when half of your heart is not there.
This experience changed me. Mathias changed me. I must admit that I have never been a highly secure girl or good at letting my feelings out. Therefore, the project and falling in love truly gave me competences and courage to deal with life with humility and open hands. As I see it, you sometimes have to take a chance and reach out in order to get a hand.
What’s special about Mathias is that when I look back at my EVS project, it is all projected in him. He learned me about love, but also he proved to me how much life can surprise you when you least expect it.