What inspired you to volunteer abroad with GapXperience Asia in Vietnam?
Gladys: I chose GapXperience Asia because with this association, I can be a volunteer for several projects at the same time.
I am a very sensitive person so I was afraid to dedicate one month to the same project with the same people and create too strong links with them. Because in that case, the separation would have been difficult.
Before beginning the project, I was traveling around the world with my husband and my son for 6 months. Our last country was Vietnam that’s why I chose this country to be a volunteer.
I chose 3 missions: soup kitchen, orphanage with disable kids and deaf school.
What was the most challenging part of the experience? Most rewarding?
Gladys: The most challenging part of the experience was being alone in a foreign country and leaving my husband and my son of 8 in France for 4 weeks.
Fortunately, as soon as I arrived in Ho Chi Minh City, I met 2 wonderful girls from Australia who were with me in the hotel as volunteers. We had very good moments together!
The other very challenging thing was to be in contact with disabled kids in an orphanage. It was very new for me because I am a sales assistant in my country so I had no experience at all with interacting with disabled children, but I discovered I was very confident with them after only 2 minutes!
The most rewarding thing was to see the smiles of the disabled kids when I arrived in the morning or when I took care of them in the orphanage. Or the smiles of the local people at the soup kitchen and the smiles of the teenagers at the deaf school.
Tell me about one person you met.
Gladys: It is difficult to tell you about only one person I met because I met so many marvelous people! If I had to choose one, I can speak about Chinh, a kid at the orphanage.
He is about 10 and was born with disabilities from being exposed to orange gas. He cannot walk, speak, or eat alone. I love him very much because despite of his health problems, he is always smiling.
He likes when I take him in my arms, when I give him a pen to draw, and when I listen to music with him. His eyes, his sounds, and his smile show me how happy he is when I take care of him.
You don’t need to know Vietnamese or English words to understand this. I miss him. And a lot of others kids.
What surprised you most during this experience?
Gladys: What surprised me most during this experience was how much I grew to appreciate volunteering in the orphanage and how comfortable I became with disabled kids.
I think it is not easy to work in an orphanage, especially when the kids are disabled, but I knew after only 2 minutes that this experience would be extraordinary! I was in my element.
What tips/insights would you share with someone considering this program?
Gladys: If you are considering this program, my advice would be to just be you!
Open your heart and the kids will see it and like spending time with you.
Stay simple, leave your partiality at home, and don’t forget things are different in Vietnam than in your country.
Don’t judge people and you will appreciate each second of this experience.