“Be brave enough to stand alone, smart enough to know when you need help, and brave enough to ask for it.”
Recently, the YAGM Central Europe group met in Eger, Hungary (in Northeastern Hungary) for our fall retreat. One of the conversations we had was about accepting help and not necessarily always needing to return the favor. Something that I have learned how to do is accepting help and realizing that people offer to give you a hand and don’t always expect you to reciprocate. I have met incredible people who have helped me in ways I didn’t know I would need it. The information lady at the train station patiently figured out how to help me with my train ticket, despite a language barrier. A woman on the train platform let me know a part of my bag was unzipped and didn’t want anything stolen. A man was looking for the same platform for the train to Eger and the two of us ran around until we found the right place. On the way home from Eger, a man who was on my train saw me struggling with my baggage as I ran down the platform, worried I would miss my next train. Because that particular train station was confusing, he helped me with my baggage, ran with me to the next stop, and told the train staff that I was coming and not to leave the station yet. Within Békéscsaba, God has given me an incredible mentor whose family has shuttled me back and forth from the train station and understands the stress of moving to a new place. My mentor has helped me with some of my work sites and is patient when I have questions. He has placed a patient principal in my life who grabs a ladder when I run into his office telling him I need someone to climb on the roof to get something for a couple of students. God gave me a community of teachers and students who have helped me adjust to a new country, a new home, and a new language. God works in the community of Békéscsaba to welcome me and feel at home, despite the miles between my home in the States and me. God knows when I need help and I stress myself out. He places people in my life to show me that everything always works out and to laugh when I am about to cry. He shows me how to accept help and shows me that it’s okay to ask for it.
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Elaina JohnsonI am from a town on the border of Minnesota and Wisconsin. I grew up in Hudson, WI, where I had the privilege of returning after graduating from Winona State University with a degree in Therapeutic Recreation. Archives
December 2016
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