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Angel |
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Angelica |
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Annie |
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Harry |
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Natalie |
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Trevor |
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A leap of faith
Angelica Kwong, Year 2
“Nepal? Sure! I’m sure you can handle yourself there.” I could still recall how surprised I was in my parents’ quick approval of my trip. My parents have never allowed me to travel abroad without them, yet here they were, allowing me to participate in volunteer service in Nepal for 8 days, without giving it a second thought. Their response gave me both excitement and anxiousness. I was excited because I could do what I’ve always wanted to do: travel! But more importantly, I was also anxious, because this trip contains everything that I am not comfortable in doing. I had never been away from my family and home for 8 days. I had never been confident speaking in front of a classroom and had certainly never tried teaching kids that don’t understand English. I also had never been comfortable socializing and working with people that I’ve just met, much less spending 8 whole days with them.
You may ask: then why did you sign up for this trip? Because I want to prove myself, that I can overcome all these difficulties. Simple as that. Fears will remain as fears if you don’t have the courage and determination to overcome them. So I’ve decided to have a little confidence in myself, took a leap of faith, and joined the service trip. And boy, was it the best decision I’ve made in 2019. I’ve gained confidence through teaching kids and became more outspoken in my team. I’ve made friends and had a chance to be independent, away from home. But most importantly, I’ve truly experienced happiness from doing volunteer service in Nepal. The smiles and laughter I see from the Nepalese kids are the best rewards for our hard work. The simple life I’ve experienced living in a village was eye-opening, and just as, if not more, fulfilling as life in the city. Because of my leap of faith, I was able to make the best out of this SLTP program, and the experience I’ve had in Nepal is surely something that I would never forget.
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