We are now at
the end of the first month of our volunteering work at WCLAC with ICS. Our work
started on the first day of Ramadan, which was the most challengeable thing.
The challenge wasn’t in just spending the day without eating and drinking; it
is about waking up early to work with not enough sleep at night. This is
because in Ramadan our prayers end late at night and after that we need to wake
up for Souhor (the meal before the
fast begins). After this we can only sleep for another two hours.
I was a teacher
for one year before volunteering at WCLAC. Working here was a new experience
for me and this experience took me to another side of my actual job. At WCLAC I
have various projects that improve my skills and abilities, such as translating
reports, finding crowdfunding websites and writing an overview report, and
holding mini workshops, where I am able to maintain control over things even if
my plans change at short notice. I work with a team from different cultures and
backgrounds; I know more about women’s issues and how to empower women through
the success stories that I hear from women’s organisations. I also know more
about my country from the field trips because I’ve been to some places I have
never been to before, like Tubas and Tulkarem. On the way, I discovered so many settlements that I don’t
know about and two camps in Nablus I never heard about, Askar and Alfara camps.
Askar was very nice looking because it’s a small camp with colorful
buildings.
The field trips
to meet the WCLAC youth volunteers have been the most interesting thing during
my work at WCLAC. I’ve been on two trips to meet WCLAC’s volunteers in
Bethlehem and Tulkarem. I went there thinking that I would meet victims of
violence, but they were volunteers about my age of both sexes. They were
excited to practice English with the UK volunteers and that allowed me to use
my translation skills. We played games with them to practice using English
words, which I enjoyed, and had a discussion with them in English. At the end of both workshops, the
volunteers told us how much they enjoyed it even though they were fasting and
in Tulkarem they thanked us by singing an Arabic song.
I’m working with
two UK volunteers and one Palestinian. The UK volunteers are from a different
background and culture, but they are open to know more about the Palestinian
culture. We are working in an environment of respect, joy, and achievement.
When we work we plan together and help each other; I feel like we are one hand.
One day we had Iftar (the meal to
break the fast) at Al Marah restaurant in the old city of Ramallah and then the
Palestinian sweet kanafeh with the
PFU volunteers. This gave me the opportunity to know the PFU volunteers, to be
closer to my group and to realize that sharing cultures and habits makes people
closer to each other and more open to other cultures.
To end I would
like to mention this poem, which describes why I choose to be volunteer:
Why be a volunteer!
It's not for money, it's not
for fame,
It's not for any personal gain,
It's just for love of fellow
man,
It's just to give a helping
hand,
It's just to give a little of
oneself,
That's something you can't buy
with wealth,
It's not medals worn with
pride,
It's for that feeling deep
inside
It's your reward down in your
heart,
It's feeling that you've been a
part
Of helping others far and near.
That's what makes one want to
BE A VOLUNTEER!
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