Interview to Francesca Miti

I went to Wasa last summer, and I still can’t recover from it. In my sleep I still dream the sounds of the laughters of “my” guys.

We always say the guys we meet become “ours”, because we feel once we meet them we start belonging to them and hope they do as well, yet we know we can never really keep them for ourselves. Because they are one of the gifts that Wasa gives you as soon as you arrive, to everyone indiscriminately.

And that’s because the guys have such a big heart that encapsulates everything, everyone, every hug, every smile, every gift, every lesson, and has always space left to give to someone else.

I think I decided to leave for Wasa right for this reason: the most egoistic ever. To dive into an experience where I could be truly useful for someone, and that would fulfill my heart with love. I can affirm I found what I was looking for, and much more.

If I could think of one word to describe my experience in Wasa is “Resilience” : the resilience that the guys and all the people from Wasa have. They never stop smiling and going ahead, nevertheless all the inconveniences and problems (much bigger than the ones we everyday complain about) they face. But also the resilience we as volunteers had to put into our work, among all the troubles we encountered, the misunderstandings with the locals, that are many due to the different language, the delays, the unfortunate surprises and the short available time (that in a place where everything goes “pole pole” becomes even shorter). Was it not for the resilience we all put, much of the work we achieved would have only remained a dream, and I thank all my companions for this.

Because when I left Wasa, I could see all around me, and in people’s faces, that the results we reached actually make sense, and will really help someone.

But an advice I would give to the next volunteers is not to expect to see immediate effects of their actions. A part of volunteering is to trust the process, and give up the satisfaction of being the first to see the result of your own work.

I left for my self, but I truly learnt what it means to put the good of someone before anything else, and it’s the most fulfilling feeling you can experience. You give up yourself to find it in the eyes and smiles of someone else.