Exit Blog – Final Days at Stepping Stones
Posted by Avanti Haque on August 9th, 2010
Dumelang!
I am still pondering how my time flew by so quickly… I remember arriving just yesterday and starring at the breathtaking landscape of Mochudi and by next Friday I will be waving adieu to this beautiful and warm village.
Looking back, I’ve come to the realization that although I may have only spent 3 months in Mochudi, I have learnt so much in a brief period of time. My colleagues (co-workers), WUSC volunteers, the participants at Stepping Stones, my host family, the Batswana, and peoples I’ve met during my internship and travels have all enhanced my learning experience and helped me grow as an individual.
It has been extremely rewarding interning. I feel privileged and fortunate to have worked with an extraordinary group of individuals, both co-workers and participants. The participants (at SSI) have shown me that life does not stop when someone is diagnosed with a disease in fact often times individuals become stronger because of their circumstances.
As I mentioned previously, my three months at Stepping Stones have flown by. During my time here, I was responsible for overseeing the tutoring program. At times I found the job a bit overwhelming as non-profits are generally understaffed and constrained for resources, however, this volunteer experience has been one of the most rewarding things I’ve done with my life. If there were no challenges, I would have learned a lot less.
Tuesday afternoons were and still are designated for study skills, where I would work with all the participants. The objective was to try and get the students excited and motivated about academics. During my time, I focused on social studies, history, geography, and writing skills. My final activity will be a ‘Science Olympics.’ The participants (at Stepping Stones) competed in a World Cup themed geography bee, where they listed the countries that competed in this year’s FIFA World Cup. The participants’ enthusiasm, curiosity, and hunger for knowledge have really impressed me. I have seen their knowledge and confidence grow in the past few weeks, have has been one of the most rewarding aspects of the internship.
Through this internship, I realized although an organization (i.e. non-profit) may be lacking in financial resources, with creativity, almost anything is possible. I will never stop dreaming and my hope is the participants of Stepping Stones will never give up on their dreams either as it is dreams that keep our world moving forward. There is no way of measuring how we as volunteers are making a difference, nevertheless if these participants achieve what they hope to with their lives, I will be satisfied.
I will never forget my time at Stepping Stones; I’ve learned more than my entirety in university in terms of ‘real life’ and made friendships that I hope will last a lifetime. My experience has been out of this world and I would not trade that for anything.
Go Siame, Sela Sentle.
