Tinggal di luar negeri selama setahun? Ikut AFS!

Pernah dengar soal AFS? Atau, mungkin tidak terlalu yakin, pernah dengar atau tidak? Kalau begitu, read on..

AFS adalah salah satu program pertukaran pelajar, dan di Indonesia AFS punya rekan namanya Bina Antarbudaya. Bina Antarbudaya punya 15 chapter di seluruh Indonesia: Banda Aceh, Medan, Padang, Palembang, Bogor, Bandung, Jakarta, Karawang, Semarang, Jogja, Malang, Surabaya, Banjarmasin, Makassar, dan Samarinda.

Setiap tahunnya, Bina Antarbudaya mengirimkan lebih dari 100 siswa-siswi SMA dari 15 chapter di seluruh Indonesia ke negara-negara seperti Amerika Serikat, Jepang, Swiss, Jerman, Italia, Perancis, Norwegia, Belanda, dan Belgia.

Nah, untuk bisa dikirim, mereka harus mengikuti serangkaian seleksi. Dan untuk tahun ini, seleksinya akan dibuka sebentar lagi! Dari tanggal 1-30 April 2010*, siswa-siswi yang duduk di kelas 1 SMA bisa mendaftar di Chapter Jakarta dan di chapter-chapter lain. Harga formulir pendaftarannya cukup murah lho, hanya rp. 35.000 saja.

Mengenai seleksi dan keterangan lengkapnya bisa dilihat di sini.

Selamat mendaftar dan good luck!!

*) tanggal pendaftaran di setiap chapter berbeda-beda, harap menghubungi chapter masing-masing secara langsung mengenai jadwal yang lebih akurat.

on finding what’s gratifying

Four days ago my mom was giving a speech. Well, ngomel-ngomel, more like it. I think for her the reason was good enough, and for me the reason was good enough for her.

The reason she was upset at me was because ever since I recovered from being sick about 2 weeks ago I have not rested. Proper rest – where you just enjoy yourself, stay at home, laze around, watch DVD or read books. And that is true, I have not done that. But I don’t mind. She further argued that instead of getting a good rest I chose to volunteer. And when she said that, I knew that it was exactly that thing that triggered her ngomel-ngomel at me. Me volunteering.

Here’s about me volunteering. I started volunteering six years ago. When I started college, I started volunteering. And if people say that being in the college shape who you are and helps you build your network, well it’s true. Only in my case, it is being in the college and volunteering that shape who I have become now and help me have my current network now. So that – who I am now, I partly owe to that volunteering thing.

The reason why I am still volunteering after six years, and after I started working, is something that people who have been volunteering will understand. This is not to say otherwise, no. It’s just that I found talking and discussing about volunteering easier to others who have shared the same experience.

Each time I volunteered, I feel rewarded and worthy and it is gratifying. It is also rejuvenating. Meeting a-hundred-and-some 16-and-17-years old from different cultures are very fascinating. It refreshes you. It made you remember how it was to be 17 again, and it reminds you of what you have accidentally forget along the way throughout your almost-adult life. Things that you forget to feel and think about any longer – it comes back when you encounter these kids.

Today, I feel it again. And the tiredness and near-fatigue that I have felt for the past week was gone for a moment. I felt energized, I felt alive, I felt bright. Although it does not solve their problem, neither wipe away their worries, nor magically disappearing their fears – it was a gratifying moment… that was followed by much hopes, concerns, and wishes, from many many people. And was grounded by lots of hard work, tears, and pains. Let’s all cross our fingers for them…

*to all of you, you know who you are. thank you for what you do.