I love it. Going to an event with low expecta- tions, just having an idea that some friends might be there. Meeting old friends and new amazing people. Catching on with each other's lives. Finding out, that one of them has moved back to Vilnius. Discovering once again, how small the world is and finding common acquaintances. Using a usual word in an unusual way and being happy with the new discovery. Networking. Seeing people sharing their ambitions and future plans, getting excited together with them. Singing "More than words" by Extreme very badly. Going to a fantastic friend's apartment in old town, with a glass Torres brandy, sitting on a windowsill inside and chatting about business, learning to dance salsa, build new years eve celebration plans. Laughing from jokes that a crazy marketing guy is telling about his work. Texting people at home, that I will be coming back home later than expected, coz it's just so much fun over here. Laughing again, for no particular reason.
Later, hitting a bar which is emptier than usually, but it's good, because it fits us all :) Listening to funny stories of other people. Ending up the evening in Cili, which is the only place open all night long. Meeting other fellas there, known from work or studies, who are chilling after a wild party night. Laughing from a buddy inviting random girls from the street to join him in a taxi ride home, promising pancakes in the morning. The girls are living elsewhere, but it doesn't matter - it's pancakes in the morning. Unfortunately, not lucky this time, girls said no. We laughed.
Coming home on Sunday midday, I was thinking, that nothing special happened last night, but somehow that night felt so special. It was so simple, so pure, so easy. It is just going out on Saturday night, but hell, not every Sunday night turns out so good.
I'm sitting now in my room, enjoying Saint Etienne with a heavenly calm voice singing through my stereo and chatting with some friends of mine who are coming to EuroCo (AIESEC conference), which is hosted in Lithuania in October. It got me thinking about how does the saying "keep in touch" work in practice for different people. I've been living in 3 different countries and visiting in another 15, and therefore, the network is wide. And I know how difficult it is to keep in touch with people being hundreds of miles away from you.
It sometimes really makes me feel uncomfortable, when I get to see someone after a while, and I see that it was a connection made due to circumstances, and it disappeared with the circumstances. It's a bit sad because some of those people were simply amazing and I'm sure there is way more common things than just circumstances we happen to be in, but the connection is not there anymore. And I think it's especially so hard for me, because time doesn't change anything for me - if I meet someone after three or twenty three years time, I would talk to that person in the same way I did the last time I saw him/her. But I know, that some of the people by that time would get more distant. For me it's okay just to meet someone and be happy about this encounter, and for some people it's more important to be continuously involved in the updates.
Autumn is the season of re-connections for me. Piret came over to Vilnius, I met her two years ago in Baltic Energy, where we both were applying for international MCs. I was announced to be selected for Belgium during the conference, and just right after it Piret ended up in Ecuador! Then we had a short meetup in Poland a year ago, and now we finally are back to our homecountries. Of course we've changed, but that was so nice to discuss about all the things that happened throughout this time! And the reintegration process. And comparing Lithuanian and Estonian guys :)
Second person to catch up with was Mate, whom I met in India, and then kept in touch, met up in a random place like Rotterdam (joking), and haven't seen for a very long time. Now in Vilnius, we were having a drink, talked about our current works, lives, meeting my friends who randomly come up to the same bar, talking to some Polish tourists, and then some more talks about drum'n'bass, Sziget and other open air festivals and then moving on to an industrial rave party. And a year seems like two days, not more.
And yesterday I got to meet up with Ausra back from Australia, Ruta back from her internship in the UK, and Vilma, simply not seen for ages. I was dead tired, but that was very nice.
And it's not over yet! euroCo is on it's way and then Energy. Both aiesec conferences, bringing some beautiful acquaintances and great friends over! Looking forward to that!
And I am working hard to send an email update to the ones who are not coming to visit me, yet... :)
I cannot believe it's autumn already! It seems that quite recently it was hot and sunny, and on the first days of September I am already looking into my winter wear and dreaming of house heating system turned on.
At any case the summer of 2007 was great! All spent in Lithuania, which was new for me after 2 years break. I made sure it would not be wasted.
Some facts:
Re-explored amazing Vilnius, Kaunas, Nida, Norviliskes, Rubikiai, Moletai and some other beautiful areas of this country
Became one year wiser
Got my driver's license
Read some incredible books: "Purple Cow" by Seth Godin, "The Tipping Point" and "Blink" by Malcolm Gladwell, "A Year of Creativity" by Brenda Malon.
Fantastic clubbing almost every weekend. Party girl is back on track, hitting the only 5 reasonable clubs in this country :)
MTV B-DAY concert - celebrating one year of MTV in Baltics, and Be2gether festival - the first ever open air festival in Lithuania
Terrific connections, re-connections and discoveries
My goal for the summer was to enjoy myself as much as I can. Happy to be in entertainment business. And when I look into my diary, autumn seems to be packed with:
visits by friends from abroad! Since I'm not able to travel much, may everyone come to visit me :)
parties and clubnights - season is starting!
Conferences - EuroCo 07 in the first place!
big things in professional development
It seems that everything is falling into place for now. Even though I don't have the "big plan" for myself in 10 years yet, but bit by bit i'm getting everything I do into one picture. living in the now, as they say :)
"Music gets another dimension when it's shared" - my friend Aurelien has borrowed it from some blog, and I've borrowed it from his IM message, because it is so true for me. I believe that music contains so much more than words, and that it connects people instantly.
Instead of writing an update about the month of July, I'll better share my top 5 music videos of this month.
5. Justice - D.A.N.C.E.
I love the drawings on T-shirts, and the whole video is so playful and fun :) And, I did do quite a bit of dancing recently :)
4. Paul Bjorn and John "Young Folks"
Because it makes me smile, relax and enjoy life. Especially when you meet best buddies after a long working day. Also remembering the folks in A'dam and Brussels that I've missed a lot.
3. Justice vs Simian - We are Your Friends
because it reminds me of my work. Don't have to worry, I love it more than ever!:)
2. 30 Seconds To Mars - From Yesterday
When I saw this video for the first time, I thought - WOW! I like the way that it's made, and I listen to this song whenever I feel I'm getting into a dip. The video is just simply amazing, and I love the frontman :D
1. Frankie Valli/The Four Seasons - Beggin'
Hypnotising video. I watch it and I'm in another world.
It`s been 3 months I'm back home. I cannot say I'm integrated into my life in Lithuania, and I guess it will never be the same anyway. But here are some key things that have been useful tips from my friends, or the things that I`ve discovered myself.
1. Reintegration doesn't happen by itself. It's a choice, to start doing things one used to do long time ago. Maybe differently, maybe better.
2. Connect. I was lucky to have my best friends still around. They always stay, no matter how far you are or how bad you are with keeping in touch (I am so not perfect in that). The thing is that they have their lives, their routines, where I was taking up only maybe a few e-mail exchanges and phone calls. So I had to be proactive to get myself back into their lives. And getting to know some more people, as well.
3. Do something. Anything. It`s easy to sleep long hours as you don`t need to go to work anymore, and you don`t even know what to do. And it`s your hometown, where you know everything, and it is kinda boring. Easy way to get into gray mood. After a short break I've started to put some discipline into my free time, getting done some things I thought of doing, but never had the time. Getting up at 7, excercise, read newspapers with a coffee cup, checking e-mails, organising some appointments, reading books, sketching, sorting pictures and my music collection, cleaning the house, meeting my friends and relaxing and enjoying life... geez, why didn`t I do this before?
4. Get a job. It's kind of an aiesec'y thing to have a long term vision of your life and take steps which are in-line with this direction. However, sometimes when environment changes rapidly, not everyone manages to stay sure about his/her direction. Experience abroad is indeed a life-changing experience :) I could get a part time brainless job which would not tie me to anything and I could leave anytime I decide what I really want to do. For some people it works, just taking a time off, paying the bills and putting off a decision for later. For me it doesn't, so my job will be a little bit more demanding. Maybe it won`t take me exactly where I want to be in 15 years, but I will stretch me so, that I can use that anywhere I move next. I have to identofy myself with my job at least to a certain extent.
6. Be ready to explain yourself. I have realized how many of the decisions I've made are different from the ones that my environment expects. When I say to my middle aged neighbour that I was working abroad, they start guessing - "Oh you also? Which one - UK or Ireland? What did you do - waitressing or you got an office job? If life is so good there, why didn`t you stay?". This is a reflection fo general trends in Eastern Europe, but I was never part of a trend.
5. Make time for family. Since my siblings have little children and they grow very fast, it was getting to know part of my family again. However, it`s still the most stable thing that changed only slightly throughout all 20 months I was away. It's a nice escape, and it help to look at old issues in a new way.
6. Keep the memories alive, but not live in the memories. I have missed so many things from the life I used to have in Be and Nl. But they say, if you look at the closed door for too long, you don`t see the other door opening. I watch my pictures from all my trips and stays abroad, i stay in touch with friends, and I keep up with some habits I used to have there. But I live in Lt and this is another good life;)
7. Don't forget to fly. I have not done traveling. I still have many ideas to work on and more to discover. It may look like I am settling, but I am always settling wherever I go. I have to take my ideas to the next level, and I chose to do it in my country. It`s true, often people start to settle and they bury some dreams they had long time ago. Some of them regret doing so. Some of them don`t because they realize that settling down was actually the thing they needed, it was their "flying". I have never regretted a single step I took, so it`s all good.
It's amazing to realize, that anything you want in the world can come so quickly. It gives a feeling of enormous power. Also - responsibility for own wishes, dreams and decisions.
That amazing feeling, when you feel so small and so powerful at the same time, when the whole world is all around you and you're trying to suck it into yourself, all of it, as fast as you can, as you know it will dissapear soon. When the things you do and peopleyou meet just fit together so perfectly in the time and place, and your eyes become wide and shining as the ones of a curious child... When amazing ideas suddenly occupy your head and don`t let go - you do what they tell you... You shall not sleep - you have to be where you have to be, you shall not miss what is meant for you!
I`ll try to keep it short otherwise you will get bored reading... IC was nice... maybe not that fancy as in India, but seeing so many people from all over the world is still amazing. ... was nice meet old friends from AIESEC, some fo them I haven`t even expected. Since I had only 4 days,I gave up the idea to have good talks with everyone, but at least seeing their presence, a hug, a smile, was enough. ... I still had some GREAT talks, which I appreciate a lot. I cannot transcribe or record them, but they are all in my heart, thanks guys!
Everyone who has `coordinator` saying on their badge
... Teambuilding with the Global Coordinator Gang was awesome! It`s good to be an corporate guest! Fancy hotel, no lining up for the food, and meeting completely different crowd. Although being out of @ is also tough sometimes. ... Running external agenda, coordinating ING participation, having country meetings - my agenda was packed. And productive. ... AIESEC Parties, yeah, baby!
After ING Chances for Children workshop: Heske (Unicef), Charlotte (ING), Patrice (Curcuma), Joep (ING CfC), myself, Declan (Bridging Divides)
Got this nice chain mail from a friend. I am not a fan of chain mail, but I liked the metaphor :)
Women are like apples on trees. The best ones are at the top of the tree. Most men don't want to climb up and reach for the good ones because they are afraid of falling and getting hurt. Instead, they sometimes take apples from the ground that aren't as good, but easy.
The apples at the top may think something is wrong with them, when in reality, they're amazing. They just have to wait for the right man to come along, the one who is brave enough to climb all the way to the top of the tree.
Now Men.... Men are like a fine wine. They begin as grapes, and it's up to women to stomp the shit out of them until they turn into something acceptable to have dinner with.
In our transition pack last year there was a motto - 'welcome to the best year of your life'. Well, it was there also two years ago for the 3 previous MC teams, but it doesn't matter;). It really was the best year of my life. I am sure the coming MC gang is going to say exactly the same after their year!
MC transition party was massive! Soooo many people, all those wonderful people I got to meet and work with throughout my year in Belgium. When 5 of us gathered for the last drink, I realized, that it's never gonna be the same again. We've lived diversity through the whole term, went through good times and the ones more challenging, and all those people will stay with me in my heart. I'm gonna miss you guys, big time, but I'm sure our roads are going to cross again!
We've come a long long way together Through the hard times and the good, I have to celebrate you baby I have to praise you like I should...
It took me a while to write about this, but there is something I really would like to share...
After having a crazy week, awesome OPS I was facilitating at and flight to Vilnius, I finally got to my mother`s place to get some sleep. However, in the morning I felt like crap, with a terrible cough and other dragons. Bye bye ITC global village, my bed is my friend for today!
ITC workshop was delivered by alumni and an external, they both work for the same company. It was a short, but also a tiny workshop for 20 people, which made it one of the best seminars I ever had. And people were very special. At least for me. I would like to share some thoughts about those three days. I`s gonna be a long post, but nobody reads those weblogs anyway ;)
The seminar was called `Art of Hosting Meaningful Conversations`, or just AoH. The agenda was pretty easy comparing to usual @ conference agendas, so we had pretty nice time to chat with each other and I think we became very connected. I wish I could've had more meaningful conversations, but my ilness consumed most of my attention and brain was constantly on antibiotics...
However, the seminar had some meaning. I think the size of the seminar was perfect - 16 people, very close, getting to know each other. Because of a chilled-out agenda (in AIESEC conference terms ending at 6 pm is very chilled out) we got a lot of space to talk and just chill. Was nice to see all people I haven't seen for a while - AoH delegates were some of my closest friends, and also AIESECers from Lithuania were around.
The agenda of the seminar got us puzzled in the beginning, because we were learning methods of hosting conversations, but it took us time to actually make the most out of it. But after all, since the seminar was done by alumni and external, I got quite important new insights on some of my personal and aiesec things. It is different opinion which is sometimes missing and I love to have it back :) I'll try to keep them concise, but i would like to give you some food for thought...
1: Learning in AIESEC - who is responsible? I am my LC EB reject long time ago. I knew I have strong competition, however, by being rejected I lost my opportunity to learn. So in a way because of that my personal development track turned out to be completely different than I wanted to have. Of course, if not this, I might haven't ended up in a Belgian MC which I don't regret at all, but maybe if I had EB experience I would have performed better in my MC position? Same with trainer/facilitator applications - would you prefer to select someone you know rather than someone who has indicated relevant experience in the application? And what is relevant experience? Does it have to be facilitating at AIESEC conferences? I would say facilitating a group of energetic young scouts is more challenging and give a better learning? As well, if you find someone being a good faci, would you choose him/her another time, thus taking a place of someone who has potential and wants to learn? Those were the questions I was asking myself during one Open Space, where one of the external trainers participated. And I will always remember what he said at the end of conversation: 'Be very careful about how you affect someone's learning, as it is a very personal thing and it can change person's life completely.'
2: We all say that AIESEC is a learning organisation. OK, fine. But somehow, when someone in the executive position does not fulfill your expectations, what happens? People don't trus you anymore. Then they limit your learning, they don't give more opportunities, as you seemed not to be good. And again, is that person not good at all, or has potential to develop? Are we good enough to spot the right potential? Are we all capable enough to develop that potential, or does the person has to do that? Being responsible for the learning of ourselves an learning of others - where is the border? Do we put enough effort to develop others, or we just leave it to the person and say 'It's up to you, you are not proactive enough'? What is the standard of our performance? Is it results, numbers, growth in organisation, or is it a learning of an individual? How to make sure that a newie and a 3d year AIESECer in the same EB would achieve the same level of performance, or how to set the expectations that those two profiles are different and that one will need more coaching than another. Who should do that? Is it up to the leader of the team or the people themselves?
I love it. Going to an event with low expecta- tions, just having an idea that some friends might be there. Meeting old friends and new amazing people. Catching on with each other's lives. Finding out, that one of them has moved back to Vilnius. Discovering once again, how small the world is and finding common acquaintances. Using a usual word in an unusual way and being happy with the new discovery. Networking. Seeing people sharing their ambitions and future plans, getting excited together with them. Singing "More than words" by Extreme very badly. Going to a fantastic friend's apartment in old town, with a glass Torres brandy, sitting on a windowsill inside and chatting about business, learning to dance salsa, build new years eve celebration plans. Laughing from jokes that a crazy marketing guy is telling about his work. Texting people at home, that I will be coming back home later than expected, coz it's just so much fun over here. Laughing again, for no particular reason.
