Changes in Longitude đź•Š
When Bob Marley said;
“Beginnings are usually scary and endings are usually sad but it’s everything in-between that makes it all worth living”
I felt it.
But then I remind myself that we shouldn’t grieve when something ends but we should be happy that it happened. Since Endings are beginnings in disguise. A good story truly never ends but it stays with you forever. Looks like it’s time to take the turn and not to fail to bend.
I had never imagined that something like AMAL would happen to me until it did. My memory of my first day at AMAL is still fresh in my tiny memory. The session which started in March feels like yesterday. I can still see the smile of my facilitators when they introduced themselves and the hope in everyone’s eye that we will make it to the end
I was like a new kid in the class who just moved from another school. At first, I felt very strange and out of place. Minding the fact, I have never changed my school, I felt for the first time. But warmth took over this first time feeling soon.
I joined Batch 192 with the hope that I will somehow make it to the end but now that it’s actually ending, I feel so sad that I want to start again.
The first two weeks at Amal were quite difficult for me. Adjusting to a new environment was never a problem, but being able to perform weekly projects gave me to give up thoughts sometimes. And then I decided to go with the flow, but I never thought that this flow would be so fluent that I would make pace with it in no time. And suddenly I was like “Charlie in the chocolate factory”.
In the first two weeks, I came to know myself, learned the value of time, life-long learning, teamwork, leadership, and positive thinking which I needed the most at that time.
In the last session, we had to thank our fellows and write something about them. Every time I saw a board with my fellow’s name on it, I started to smile. I would write a message while smiling but when I was done, I was a little misty-eyed. That made me realize it would be a hard goodbye.
I will not point out specific names because every fellow I saw in that little zoom window meant the world. Just like a flower needs every little nutrient to grow I also need all of these fellows to grow. My life map isn’t complete without 40+ Zoom windows wishing me the best.
Many people don’t believe me when I say I met some gems in just 3 months because to them finding gems takes up your whole life. But for me, it took only a 10-minute breakout room and a 2-hour long zoom session. If I say I found people like me, it won’t be an exaggeration at all.
Amal fellowship taught me a lot about myself, what I am now and what I mean to this world. I still remember in one of our PW there was a video of Jacqueline telling us how we can be leaders. That video has stayed with me since then and I have learned to be a leader in myself. In little moments when we least imagine our leadership pops up and asks us to stand up.
When I look back at my Amal journey I see a roller-coaster ride, which had its ups and downs. I had challenges and a euphoric moment. But in the end, I finished laughing and smiling, I have come to terms with the fact that everything must come to an end. And the harder the road feels the better the destination is. I am now a lifelong learner who will give all of her just for valuable feedback. Let’s move on to the next chapter of life!❤❤
