This post shares some thoughts from one delegate that came to Taraz in July to work with Youth Impact. As we prepare for another group of people from the States (arriving tomorrow morning), we thought it would be good to look back and see how a trip like this affects a delegate.
Posted by Shannon Neckers, Delegate
It's been two weeks since the Youth Impact Delegation has returned to the States. I was one of the lucky ten to embark on such a wonderful journey. I've had many thoughts go through my head since we've returned. I'd sum up my experience as the best 10 days of my life! It was amazing! I, along with the team, prepared for months before leaving the U.S., but nothing can fully prepare you for the experience (and I mean this in a good way)! I went with the intention of helping others and I came back with several stories of the people of Kazakhstan helping me!
To further explain, let me give a bit of background. Before my trip, I was a girl who had just graduated from college and due to a series of events, I felt afraid to dream about my future. During this trip, I found myself dreaming once again about my possibilities. It was as if my heart was really beating again and I was equipped with a new view of life. My hope is that how I came out of the experience was similarly felt by several of the teens from the PTL program as they journey into unknown territory of their own. Not only that, but one thing our team worried about was being able to truly help the children we would meet despite the short amount of time we had with them. We did! We made an impact! On several occasions the translators would tell us, "The kids are so happy! They're laughing and smiling!" "What you're doing is a good thing." Also, just as I'm reveling in all my experiences and processing it all, I hope that those we met are still being impacted as they remember us.
Now back in the states, we’re all missing the relationships we formed with the staff, our host home families, and the children. It was great sharing cultures and ideas with one another. A special bond was formed among us. One thing I loved about the trip was that it was easy to jump into getting to know others at a deeper level. The language difference in some ways was the complete opposite of a hindrance. A boldness came in using a translator to speak our words for us and trying to communicate with the people we met. We only had a few short days or in some instances a few short hours to be with the teens and young orphans and our goal was to make it all count! What a fantastic way to live life each day! In addition, what a wonderful example we were hopefully able to leave with those who we came in contact with during our stay. This continues to inspire me greatly, knowing that I make a difference. What should have been complicated (trying to communicate with 3 different languages among the group- Kazakh, Russian, and English), turned out for me to be simple. Doing small acts of kindness were more easily perceived. Although I feel like I'm just getting started talking about my time abroad, I'll leave with a poem I wrote eight years ago after spending a few short weeks with four Kazakh children visiting the states for a diabetes camp. I feel that the poem is appropriate in explaining my time spent in Kazakhstan just two weeks ago.
Laughter- the universal language
No matter where you are you can understand
Smile- the lifter of someone's day
Even if you do not understand
Thank you- two simple words
Take so little time to say but mean so much
Understanding the world and the world understanding you
Starts by giving something small
