An Eye-Opening Experience to Last A Lifetime

After being with the kids for 7 hours, I am now sitting out on the balcony, surrounded by beautiful greenery. This day feels surreal. To be honest, this entire trip feels surreal. Never having had a roommate, and now being with 11 other people in a confined space, has placed me in unfamiliar territory. However, living with these 11 people I didn’t really know before this trip, in our homeland, has created a special bond between us that keeps growing every day. This bond is already helping create memories to last a lifetime. As Ani would say: “This isn’t real life, we’re in a delusional world.”

Having been to Armenia more than seven times, and visiting rural areas in other countries, I pretty much knew the conditions under which these kids in the villages were living in. However, I never really had the opportunity to communicate or spend time with them. When traveling to Armenia with my family, I always found myself living in conditions I was used to in America. Living with a host family during the Youth Corps program has opened my eyes to the real lifestyle people have in Armenia. I feel i’m truly experiencing the life of a Gyumri citizen.

The camp for the kids is also extremely eye-opening. Talking with them and sharing stories has allowed us to bond and build a close relationship with each other, where we’ll ultimately become friends. It’s funny how much the kids want to make us, the Youth Corps participants, proud. They’re inspired by us. But in reality, I’m inspired by them. The will, passion, and determination they possess, living in a recovering, broken-down city that doesn’t offer many innovative utilities and opportunities is amazing; their optimistic outlook and desire to learn English when they can otherwise be at home playing, is definitely a trait to applaud. Though not always angels, because trust me, they can be a handful (three campers in my group peed themselves today), you can’t help loving to be around them. We’ve already learned how to manage them though. To calm them down, we threaten to not allow them to play soccer. Their facial expressions when soccer is mentioned is hilarious, and they argue over which is the best team, Real Madrid or F. C. Barcelona, on a daily basis.

It hasn’t been long that we’ve been here and I’m looking forward to the weeks that are to come. Knowing that I was able to make a difference in a camper’s life, even if its a minuscule one, is incredible. So far, this trip is unique compared to all other trips I’ve taken before. Every day I’m reminded of how extremely grateful I should be for the lifestyle I have back home, and the opportunities that I’ve been given on a silver platter. Until now, I hadn’t been able to understand the true value of it all.

I can’t wait to see what Armenia has in store for us next.

Christine