thoughts
Hello you - part 2: Something changed
February 18, 2016
When I watched the news tonight, I realized that
something changed. I always wonder who these people are, who'se faces you can see in the news. Every evening they show the same typical pictures of
crowds of refugees walking through Europe. But tonight I wasn’t wondering who they
are. Instead I looked in their faces and felt like I know them. I saw an
expression in a young boys eyes and I realized I know this expression very
well. I know those dark eyes, sun-tanned skin and a little bit of a smile. And
then I saw a young man and he looked so similar to people I met. I saw the fear covered under many layers of hope.
Every time I spend time with the refugees I want to
ask them about their stories. I'm interested what kind of hopes they have, what they imagine their future can look like. But my
Arabic is almost non-existant and their German is getting better every week but still not
that much after half a year in Germany. So even if they understood my question
what should they say?
Instead we just play games. Most of the time we play with kids but sometimes the parents and older siblings join us. Once we played a horse memory with some men for almost two hours. And I can tell you I never had more fun playing than with them. Often we play without rules but if on kid finally understood the rules, they teach each other. Playing games is better than just sitting next to each other unable to talk for more than five minutes. But when we play we understand each other. We understand the foreign words because we know what they mean, or because we see the expression in their faces. The expression I realize again when I see the young boy in the news on tv.
Instead we just play games. Most of the time we play with kids but sometimes the parents and older siblings join us. Once we played a horse memory with some men for almost two hours. And I can tell you I never had more fun playing than with them. Often we play without rules but if on kid finally understood the rules, they teach each other. Playing games is better than just sitting next to each other unable to talk for more than five minutes. But when we play we understand each other. We understand the foreign words because we know what they mean, or because we see the expression in their faces. The expression I realize again when I see the young boy in the news on tv.
It’s a special relationship we build, but it’s a
relationship. And relationships are the most important thing. Through
relationships we learn a new language faster, we are less alone, we learn more
about a new culture, bureaucratic stuff gets easier because we can help each
other, overall it get’s easier to be in a foreign country. So on some days I was
wondering why I was going there, just playing games, just drawing pictures,
just hugging each other, just walking around together. I got annoyed because I
wanted to do something great to really help them, something that would make a
change immediately. But I had no idea what to do, where to start. But then I
realized that the most important thing I can do is to just be there. Just be
there. Be a friend. I realized that the most important thing was to build
relationships. We learned each others names first, then we started to teach us
each others language.
There’re a lot of people who don’t agree with me.
People, who try to do something good by volunteering. There is nothing bad about
this, but there is a whole lot more in it. If you stop being a volunteer and
start being a friend, a lot will change.
And there are a lot of people who are afraid. Afraid
to meet those people, afraid to go there. Even most volunteers are afraid to
get too close. We don’t realize how similar we are to those people and not how
similar they are to us. We are afraid they might steal, rape or start fights.
And I know those things are happening, but I won’t be afraid.
I won’t be afraid. Because there is this love God put in my heart for those people and I can’t stop myself from getting closer, from making friends. And the people I spend my time with, they will feel this love. The Almighty God who put this love in me, he promised me that he walks with me. He sent me to these refugees, and he told me not to be afraid. So why should I?
لا تخافوا،
Janina
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