Written by CorpsAfrica/Malawi Volunteer Ms. Fides Jere
It took me a lot of courage and energy to step out of my comfort zone to find myself a home in my community, in the Eastern Region of Malawi. Sometimes challenging yourself can be uncomfortable and frightening at the same time, but you realize it’s a worthwhile pursuit in a million ways. The moment I took a few steps moving around and interacting with community members I realized my dream for my personal growth had arrived, achieving big and enhancing my skills and knowledge in Project Management and Community development things I never imagined I could accomplish.
Filled with Anxiety and fear, I reached my community having a warm welcome from my host mother and my sisters. Then a few minutes later, neighbors started coming to visit wearing smiles and narrating different stories about the beauty of the village, telling me about the cultural dances, teaching me basic words of their Yao language and other village activities. Then drastically my fears started furnishing and started feeling at home.
A day later I started acclimatizing myself to the community, the food, social norms, and beliefs, and also getting to know local and influential leaders in the community. I had a tour around the community, familiarizing myself with the Geographical setup, appreciating the people, and interacting with all sorts of groups in the community.
Championing the Sexual and Reproductive Health Club, Adolescent Girls, and young women club is one activity that made me more comfortable and feel welcome in the community as I got to understand and try to solve issues affecting their everyday lives.
I enjoyed applying the skills I was imparted with at the 2023 CorpsAfrica’s pre-service training in Mponela into reality, doing community asset marking was so enjoyable, as interacting with locals, and seeing them accepting you as one of them in their community.
The experience and skills that this service is giving have had of great impact on my life, and my life has never been the same since I joined this service. Every day has its challenges and is a learning experience. I would love to see my contribution positively change the lives of many people in this awesome community as a CorpsAfrica Volunteer.