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Focus only on your own growth.
GapYear is a time for growth and happiness.
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28th gapper Jeon Sora
A one-and-a-half-year gap year
Experience during the gap year: Volunteer work at an NGO
Always feeling like I'm being chased by something
I went straight to graduate school without ever taking a leave of absence during college. Then I studied for civil service exams for a year, quit, and immediately got a job.
Because I had taken the job in a 'just get in anywhere' way—feeling pressured and with no financial or psychological room to spare—my satisfaction with the work dropped so much that it became difficult to continue.
So eventually,changing jobsI started thinking about changing jobs and began looking for information. Then I happened to learn about NGOs and became interested in going abroad. From then on I searched through all sorts of websites to find opportunities to volunteer with overseas NGOs.
After looking through many NGOs, I decided on a program where I would receive six months of training in the United States, spend six months in Mozambique, Africa doing activities such as rural development, primary education, and hygiene education, and then spend another six months in the United States promoting the projects carried out in Africa. Since I had no prior experience in overseas volunteering or NGOs, the fact that I could receive training was a major advantage, and I decided to leave immediately.
Worries and determination
I decided to leave and immediately began making plans.I planned to quit my job at the end of August and depart for the United States in November. So I was really looking forward to having a great time in September and October. But as soon as I quit my job I injured my leg and had to have it in a cast. In the end,I couldn't enjoy myself as planned and had to stay at home. I could only think of it as getting the bad luck out of the way before leaving.
My mother was very worried too. I'm always the type to make a decision and then inform my parents, so I bought the plane ticket before telling them this time as well. When she heard me, she was astonished, but knowing I would go anyway she consented. However, she worried about my health up until the day I left. That worried me more in my heart than my mother's opposition would have.
My gap year's goals were exactly two things.
First, I would find work that I truly love and something that I can do well.
And I would gain the courage to put into practice what I had only thought about until then! With the resolve to achieve these two things, I set off.
'Ten dollars feels too much like pity.'
The training that started in the U.S. wasn't easy from the beginning. Because activities were carried out in teams, there were many troubles due to differences of opinion. I also experienced problems firsthand caused by cultural differences. The issue I encountered most often was differing concepts of time. Since there were many Latin American friends, it was common to start later than the agreed time. At first we argued, but later we adjusted to each other a little. I slowed down while those friends sped up (laughs).
Even when we were fundraising,by culturethe reactions differed. Many Americans will at least offer a greeting whether or not they donate. They'll say something like, 'I can't donate right now, but thank you for doing this work.' Koreans feel very sorry if they can't donate. And when they do donate, they tend to give a large amount. Once someone donated $10, but they hadn't gone far when they came back and said, 'Ten dollars feels too much like pity,' and put in $100.
The most impressive place was South America. Although the amounts were small, a great many people took part. When fundraising in Guatemala, one donor said, 'Although we are not well-off now, we have all experienced greater poverty, so we are happy to help.'
The most difficult memory during my gap year was when I was in Africa.
Many people think Africa was difficult because of physical discomfort, but for me it was mentally harder.
I tend to take the lead in work or meetings and have always done so. But in Mozambique, Africa, they used Portuguese, so there was no part where I could take the lead.Whatever I did, I had to play a supporting role and do tasks passively as told, and that hurt my pride.
I was only able to overcome that problem later, not because my Portuguese improved but becauseI acknowledged it..
I admitted to myself, 'I can't do everything well.' I realized I had been trying to fit everything into a framework I made — trying to make people and situations fit that mold. After accepting that and becoming more relaxed, strangely my Portuguese started to improve.
I said the hardest memory during my gap year was Africa, right? Conversely,the best memorywas also Africa.
I even miss living without electricity and water the most. It was a very simple life. I woke up in the morning when the sun rose and to the crowing of roosters and the sound of neighborhood children playing. And around 5–6 p.m., because the sun sets, I would cook before then, and when it got dark there was nothing to do so I slept. Also, there was no refrigerator, so we bought only what we needed as we went.
Living so simply without needing to worry about complicated thoughts was an experience I had for the first time in my life. When I was in Korea, even if I had money there were so many things I wanted to buy that I always felt short on money, but there I had nothing to buy and no comparisons to make — I lived a truly simple life.
Now that I've returned from my gap year
Other people's opinionsI realized they're not as important as I thought. After finishing my gap year and coming home, I looked at my wardrobe and it was full of clothes. I was surprised at how I used to live wearing so many outfits and accessories. And countries like Brazil, the United States, Colombia, Costa Rica, etc.from around the worldfriendsI've made a lot of friends. Thanks to these friends, I also learned enough Portuguese for basic communication.
There are many things I want to learn in the future. Capoeira (a Brazilian martial art) that I learned from Mexican friends, salsa dancing that I learned from Colombian friendsAnd I plan to gradually learn the woodworking and gardening skills I picked up while living self-sufficiently. I realized there are countless things to learn and turn into a career, and in the near future I...A small hope of mine is to travel the world and learn skills I don't yet know.
What does a gap year mean to me?
If I hadn't taken a gap year, I would have earned a lot of money during that time. But I would have missed experiences that are more valuable than money.experiencesI wouldn't have had them. I would have missed experiences I had for the first time in the United States and Africa, and I wouldn't have known many countries that I had only heard of by name — like Costa Rica, Brazil, Colombia, Argentina — nor the friends I met there. To me, a gap year is a period of experiences that gave me these precious things.
