Before arriving in Hungary, I had all sorts of expectations: of what my home life would be, of what my work week would be, and of what I would be. As I settle into a new community, a new home, and a new work schedule, I realized that not only have my expectations changed, but so has my reality. Back in the States, a typical work week is Monday through Friday, 9am to 5pm. In Hungary, I will be working with High school students on developing their English Language skills, helping a teacher develop a Jewish History tour of Békéscsaba, work at local Elderly Care Facility, with adults with disabilities, with a youth group of Roma and Non- Roma youth, and anything else that is asked of me. I will be working a variety of hours, 6 days a week.
Before I arrived, I expected that when I showed up, I would be handed a schedule of my duties, where I was supposed be and when. I also expected that I would be told exactly what my job was and what my supervisors wanted me to do. Instead, I learned to embrace that the staff that I would be working with at all of my sites didn't want to overwork and overstress me. Instead, I have picked my own hours, for the most part, and the days that I work. Although this concept is great to those just visualizing this, it was hard for me to grasp. I was used to having my duties laid out and knowing exactly what I was supposed to be doing and when. My mom laughs when I FaceTime her and tell her about what is going on in my life. In the States, I was high strung and needed a minute to minute of everyday or at least advanced warning of what was going to happen. Instead, when I am told to show up somewhere, that could mean a meeting with a supervisor, or it could mean "Come on, I am taking you to your work site where you will meet your new supervisor and colleagues for the year". I have embraced not needing to constantly be in control of what is going to happen. Hungarians have a firm belief that things will turn out exactly how they need to turn out. Now, that may be several weeks in advance or the day of the event. But things will always turn out. The best example I have of this is the day I went with a local pastor to the local immigration office to fill out visa paperwork, only to be told that the paperwork wasn't right and that I needed to come back. Now this is ALREADY intimidating, but then to have this meeting happen in a language you are still learning, you start to get a little panicky. My country coordinators are great and have let all of the Hungary volunteers know a head of time what to expect and the paperwork that we needed to bring with us. But then, this pastor and I headed to the bank to set up an account so that I could receive my monthly stipend. The bank that we went to is a branch of a larger Hungarian system that my country coordinators use and are familiar with. Now mind you, when we arrived, I was already wound up after the immigration office. We walk into the bank and sit down with a representative. I pull out my passport, which is all i expected that I needed. I was asked for my social security card, which I didn't even have in Hungary, because that wasn't on my packing list. I wrote down my number and was told i needed an exact copy of my card. I almost started bawling in the middle of the Bank Lobby. The pastor looked at me, laughed and said "Elaina, breathe. Don't stress out. It's going to work out." Fast forward to starting my first official day of work tomorrow. Everything is working out. My bank account is set up. I have a roof over my head, I am fed, clothed, and have an incredible support system of teachers, pastors, and staff of other local facilities. In true Hungarian fashion, everything is working out, just maybe not to my American sense of the phrase.
2 Comments
|
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
|