Everybody talks about going away

“Everybody talks about going away, everybody talks about being away, but who knows that returning is maybe most difficult?”

You have probably experienced a lot during your life as a European Volunteer (EVS) over the last few months. You learned a lot, have seen a lot, met fantastic people, discovered new sides about you…

And now you are probably back in your home country, trying to settle in again, to live a new life without forgetting about the old one… how is it going? Is it as smooth as you expected it to be? Or are you suddenly facing problems you have never dreamed of? Are you the only one having this kind of problems? Are there any ways how do deal with them best? What shall you answer, when anybody asks you “And, how was it?”? Are there any advantages of returning home?

Do you feel a bit on-your-own and swamped sometimes? Do you remember how everybody prepared you for leaving the country to do EVS? How you have been expecting a culture shock? And think again, how many people prepared you for the feelings you are undergoing now?

Well, I felt a bit stranded, when I came back from my EVS. Luckily, I figured out over time, that I was not the only one: it helped me a lot to talk about my experiences I had abroad with other ex-volunteers and to listen to other EVS stories. I suddenly felt understood and not lonely anymore. I have finally learned how to cope with my experiences by talking with other ex-EVS-people.

For that very reason I decided to do a Future Capital around the re-entry. I was brainstorming, sent questionnaires about the process of returning home to ex-volunteers all around Europe and got heaps of fantastic answers. From people who have done all kind of work, in all kind of countries, for different amounts of time and different time ago. But no matter what, where, why, for how long and by whom: many stories resembled each other and I’ve found myself over and over again.

I’ve tried to melt all the stories together to show one huge picture. It’s a rather colourful one, covering –which I feel are – the most important topics around returning back after living abroad (e.g. possible problems about returning home and advices how to solve them; new faces of old relationships; how to integrate the experience into one’s own life story and how to make the best out of the situation…).

Furthermore, I was travelling around, have been visiting various ex-volunteers in different European countries interviewed them and put it all together to a 30 minutes documentary movie. As this is probably the best way to connect stories with faces.

Fancy a look? Just write a mail to my sending organisation Jugendwerk der AWO Württemberg, jugendwerk@web.de, and you may get the book (+DVD, when interested) at cost price plus mailing expenses (maximum of 8 € - if living outside of Germany - including everything), or write a mail to one.year.after@gmail.com, and I’ll send you the pdf-version – if you are keen on reading about 150 pages on the computer.

I’m really looking forward to maybe helping you integrating back and to your feedback! It’s all about collected experiences and I hope you may profit from them as well!!!

(Do you wonder why this is an English article in Youth Reporter, even if I am from Germany? Well, I couldn’t resist going abroad again, am living in Auckland, New Zealand at the moment and working as an intern. And even if my English is still not the very best, it’s just that much easier for me to think in English right now – and besides that, you’ll find that the book and DVD is in English as well…!)

Have a great time, wherever you are and what you are doing…