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"... we can all learn from them.."
Graduate Structural Engineer, Anna Juda writes about the four weeks volunteer programme with SERVE with the Badjao community in Philippines
Diary entry: 31st July 2024
Where do I begin? The 4 weeks spent here were full of laughter, jokes, memories made for life and most importantly connections made with the locals like no other. I think that most, if not all of my highlights relate to the Badjao people.
Together with other SERVE volunteers I had the honour of leading different workshops for their community while working alongside their youth leaders. This allowed me to immerse myself more in the Badjao culture and traditions.
The first highlight that comes to my mind is the kindness, open-heartedness and selflessness of the Badjao people and the willingness to learn. Walking through the Nano Nagle Centre for the first time, felt like being at home.
They met us with big smiles as if we’re relatives that they haven’t seen in a long time. During our time together they said that they learned a lot from us especially in the art/drama/music workshops that we did with the students during the week. We co-led the workshops with youth leaders. But I think that we learned more from them.
They taught me about the value of family and friends. And the importance of sharing any worries and happiness with others because a problem shared is a problem halved.
Another highlight is the Sports Day. It was organised for 122 students of the Badjao community by the Irish volunteers. This event is something that they look forward to every year. The massive smiles on their faces when they saw the sport and fun activities that we prepared would light up anyone having a bad day.
During that day we shared many competitions and falls but most importantly we danced in the rain. Every time that I think about the small things that made them happy and excited on the day, warms my heart. The ability to be grateful for things that in Ireland would be unappreciated is something that we all can learn from them.
The Team Building beach day with the Badjao community leaders is another one of my highlights. Around the world the Badjao tribe is known as the people who can swim underwater for an extended period of time. When we got to the beach it turned out that a lot of them don’t know how to swim due to overpollution in the water and the surrounding area where they live. Realising that many are unable to swim but are comfortable with the water will stick with me as it proved to me that stereotypes are often wrong.
A highlight other than the amazing people that I got to know during my placement, is the locally produced fruits like mango and pineapple that we got to eat everyday. The freshness and sweetness of them is something that I hope everyone will get to experience at least once in their lives.
There is so much more that I could mention as my highlights but those are the ones that stick with me the most. The volunteering experience showed me that even though SERVE and Badjao are from opposite sides of the world with different traditions we still find joy in the same things and share some similar problems. This shows that maybe we’re not as different from each other as we may think. All the conversations and laughter that we shared with each other, will stick with me forever.
