Bosnia Youth Leadership Spring 2013: Reflections
Bosnian students Una, Luka, and Ajla reflect on their experiences learning and adjusting to a new culture in Seattle, and being part of the intense but rewarding Youth Leadership Program.
Over the last few weeks, students from Bosnia and Herzegovina have been writing about their experiences in Seattle during our Spring Youth Leadership Program. In this series of posts, Una, Luka, and Ajla reflect on their experiences learning and adjusting to a new culture, and being part of an intense but rewarding program through which they'll gain the skills to be better leaders in their communities once they return home.
Community - by Una Belko
Una, right, and Ajla on the ferry to Tillicum Village.
Hi everyone! My name is Una and I'm a participant of the Youth Leadership Program with Bosnia and Herzegovina. We've been in Seattle for a week and a half. The first week of our program was about civic engagement. We had lots of workshops where we learned about diversity, networking, civic engagement and American culture.
This week is about community, service and diversity. Today, we had a workshop with Era Schrepfer, Executive Director of FIUTS, who spoke about communities and community assets. It was really interesting and made us think about projects we have to do when we come back to BiH and what we can do with the assets we already have in our cities.
After that, we went to The Pike Place Market to practice identifying community assets and community needs. Pike Place Market is one of the oldest parts of Seattle and a really great place to meet people from different culture because there are lots of Mexican, Indian, Turkish, Asian and many other shops in this area. We talked to people that work here and they told us about their jobs, how do they help their community and things they think should be improved.
Pike Place Market is a small community that has a foundation for daycare for seniors, food banks, care about seniors,... This market isn't as big and modern as some other Seattle markets, but I was really impressed by their diverse community because people are close to each other and they are ready to help as much as they can. Pike Place Market is really unique and everyone who comes to Seattle should visit it.
Greetings from Seattle!
Easter in Seattle? Cool. - by Luka Petric
Luka Petric
May 5, another hot day in Seattle. If somebody tells you that it's always raining here, don't believe him. This day was beautiful for me. It's Orthodox Easter today. I had to get up earlier, so I could be at the church at the right time. After this, I learned something new -kayaking. I was good for the first time. But, there was a problem, I tried to swim in Lake Washington. I'll never try something similar again. It was freezing. Now I know why there was no one swimming.
After two weeks in Seattle, I got used to the American style of living. People are very polite. You feel nice when people smile at you, and they don't even know you. I have the best host family. The only thing I miss is Bosnian food.
All those workshops we did, gave me a lot of ideas about my project. Every day, I can see more differences between communities in my country and here. I know a lot of things that can improve my community. It will be fun to make a project. :)
Who's gonna save the world tonight? - by Ajla Aliman
Alja
This has been a long and perfect sunny day. One of the most beautiful since I came here. I had a lot of fun today. Una and I discovered that music shop where you can eat breakfast and get a coffee really exists. Literally amazed. I spent a lot of money and I feel freaked because of that, a bit. But I don't care. I am enjoying my last days in Seattle as much as I can. I also had a great time with Ballard host families. This was our last Sunday together. We had a little dinner, party. Nermin, Stipe, Ilija and I were playing with our little host brothers in the park. Sunny, warm, perfect for playing outside. After they all left home, Ilija, Stipe stayed together for a while. And we ended up laughing. About nothing and everything. Laugh is the cheapest medicine. It made me forget about all things going through my head. At least for a while. Try it!
Photo by Ajla: A quote shared during a workshop on best practices in community engagement.
I hate this feeling: I miss home, but it's so good here. Avoiding the fact that I started up being familiar with my constant headaches in the last 7 days, I feel great here. I am truly exhausted with a tight schedule, but I would stay here if I could. Probably. I DO miss my loved ones, but I DON'T miss the place where they are. I have to start packing my stuff soon. I also feel a little bit confused and disappointed. In people. In people that I used to trust. And annoyed by some facts. I am okay while I am busy, but this night is like a dark monster. It comes to every little corner of my mind. Going back to Bosnia terrifies me. I don't know what I am going to do when I come home. I'll be stuck in a place where I don't want to be. Again. I have to find a way to do the best for me. I promised that to myself. And I'll do it. This whole conclusion makes me feel like a flower on the storm. Actually, there's no conclusion at the end. But it'll better for me to ride out the storm, immediately. Sorry for the whole story, this is just my way to express what I feel. Mess, really huge mess. But I'll be fine as long I know that somewhere outside is someone who takes care of me. That fact makes me smile :)
Had some spaghetti made by my host dad, I feel satisfied. And I am finishing another long day with Nutella and police sirens somewhere far. Curious about what is going out there, I am slowly sinking into the place where nothing matters. Good night world, I am leaving you with your minds and your ideas, concerns, and joys.
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The Youth Leadership Program with Bosnia and Herzegovina is sponsored by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, U.S. Department of State. Learn more here, and click here for details on how to host a participating student or teacher for a homestay during the next program this Fall.