December 5th is a special day, the International Volunteer Day, in which all the efforts of all those people who work selflessly are celebrated, in the foreground we celebrate to thank all the organizations whose aim is to help people in difficulty, it also includes a lot of young people, who work every day to make other people’s lives better. Throughout the years always more youngsters are approaching this, especially after and during the covid period, there was a boom in volunteering, lots of guys with a lot of free time on their hands, who were coming from a difficult period have embarked on this path, making volunteering an increasingly popular and well-regarded practice both for the help one gives and for all that one received.
I have started to have experience abroad in exchange for work by doing a month-long internship with Erasmus+ in Ireland. This was my first experience sharing a flat and working. I have been dealing from the beginning with people who spoke English, and the old me with his non-knowledge has had several disappointments in this regard, but as bad as this may sound, it has given to me the strength to learn fast and put myself out there. Volunteering is something I recommend especially to introverts, it helps a lot to overcome one’s limit, plus it allows you to have wonderful experiences. The knowledge acquired during that month served to me to undertake an Intercultural-Exchange with a Latvian guy that I had to host in my home, and later it would be the other way around. That leads you to think about your expectations, and pushes you to treat others as you would like to be treated yourself, consolidating the principles of coexistence and altruism. And in addition, when you will be hosted, you will receive all the benefits of being in another country. It helps you to relate to your new family and a new culture. Communication and listening skills, a better understanding of lives, social skills and advanced general knowledge, these are just some of the things that a period of volunteering can give to you if you use it in the right way. I also had a stint as a volunteer with children in my hometown, precisely with children in foster care. I can say that besides being satisfying for yourself, at the same time you’re helping someone in need, and this is especially pleasing to those you are lending a hand to, doing an action full of humanity. So the point is, you don’t necessarily need to go abroad to volunteer, you can also benefit helping a volunteer organization in your city, and not far from where you live.
So here we are, December 5th 2024 International Volunteer Day, I’m here in Czech Republic, at the beginning of my volunteering period with Dobrovolnické Centrum, ready to continue this path, celebrating this day dedicated to all of us.
Alessio Gatti 05/12/2024