A perfect recipe

Below is a very simple recipe to happiness. All ingredients are easily available.
for this you need:

A jug of health
Half  a tea spoon of a clear mind
1 tea spoon of hope
1 table spoon of will and motivation
A hand full of friends and family, (you can put in your own portions - this is all based on your personal taste)
a pinch of work
half a cup of hobbies
a cup of love
sprinkle with a lot of smiles and positivity
and this would be perfect if you join it all with a partner

Other peoples words

 

"don't get me wrong when i say this, i like you, you are a nice person, but i would eat you if i had to" - discussion i had in a bar about the extra value put on humans and the little value given to animals. F.

Happiness resides not in possessions and not in gold; the feeling of happiness dwells in the soul.
Democritus



The happiness of your life depends upon the quality of your thoughts; therefore guard accordingly.
Marcus Aurelius


Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom. Aristotle

The most difficult thing in life is to know yourself.
Thales


Life is the sum of your choices.
— Albert Camus


Change has long been a fearful thing for human beings ... and at the same time, it is our most Divine opportunity. Clinging to the banks of the river may seem safe and more secure, but life's possibilities are truly engaged only when we trust, release and become part of The Flow of the Universe.
— Chelle Thompson, Editor of Inspiration Line

A dream you dream alone is only a dream
A dream you dream together is reality ~ Yoko Ono

"The opinion which other people have of you is their problem, not yours."
Elisabeth Kubler-Ross

“We don’t see things as they are, we see them as we are.”
Anaïs Nin

When the power of love overcomes the love of power the world will know peace.
Jimi Hendrix

"I believe that we are constantly experiencing transformation and that’s why we need to let life guide us.

Every day is different, every day can have a magic moment, but we don’t see the opportunity, because we think: ‘Oh this is boring I’m just commuting to work.’
How many interesting people you are missing, just because our parents told us “don’t talk to strangers”?
You must get as much as you can from any journey, because – in the end – the journey is all you have. It doesn’t matter what you accumulate in terms of material wealth, because you are going to die anyway, so why not live?"
- Paulo Coleho

"..Of all the powerful weapons of destruction that man has invented, the most terrible – and the most cowardly – is the word....
Check to see if you yourself are using this weapon.
Check to see if someone is using this weapon on you. And put a stop to both."

"...talk to strangers. Connecting to people is a blessing, not a threat"
- Paolo Coelho

“When the sun rises, it rises for everyone.”

“There are always flowers for those who want to see them.”
 - Henri Matisse

“If you don't stand for something you will fall for anything.”
 - Malcolm X

“A man is but the product of his thoughts what he thinks, he becomes.”
- Gandhi

Don't trust the smile, trust the actions
- Lionel Ritchie

Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goal.
- Henry Ford


You can't build a reputation on what you are going to do.
- Henry Ford

When everything seems to be going against you, remember that the airplane takes off against the wind, not with it.
- Henry Ford

Character cannot be developed in peace and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved.
- Helen Keller

No one can make you feel inferior without your consent
- Eleanor Roosevelt

You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face.
- Eleanor Roosevelt

To avoid criticism, do nothing, say nothing, and be nothing.
- Elbert Hubbard

People are just about as happy as they make up their minds to be
- Abraham Lincoln

The only way to have a friend is to be one.
- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second-rate version of somebody else.
Judy Garland

The best you can be at any given moment is yourself.
Elizabeth Alraune

Embrace your uniqueness. Time is much too short to be living someone else's life.
Kobi Yamada

“Trying to forget someone you love is like trying to remember someone you never met”

“I hope your dreams take you... to the corners of your smiles, to the highest of your hopes, to the windows of your opportunities, and to the most special places your heart has ever known.”

"Speak when you are angry - and you'll make the best speech you'll ever regret.”
Dr. L.J.Peter

“Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one who gets burned.”

“Anyone who angers you conquers you”

“You should make a woman angry if you wish her to love”

"There are two things a person should never be angry at, what they can help, and what they cannot.”

“Whatever is begun in anger ends in shame.”

“Anger, if not restrained, is frequently more hurtful to us than the injury that provokes it”

“The best answer to anger is silence.”

I introduce you to..

This beautiful young girl is Monica Nassande a 7 year old Ugandian girl. I was very lucky to meet her in my last weeks there. Besides being absolutely mesmerized by her beauty she taught me alot. She is a lively little girl who gets along with everyone and is brave and fearless. She managed to conquer even the coldest of hearts. Is not conditioned yet by what is right or wrong, so what she does is in complete innocence and from her heart. She is enthusiastic, fun and a sensitive girl.
I first met her when I went deep in the bushes to pick up another neglected little girl. Both living in mud huts, these children where far off from others and all what they knew was their area and their mixed family. Coming back to the orphanage, a few days later, her cousin who is now at the orphanage, but lives in the same hut told us that when we left she was crying to come with us. At 7 years she was ready to leave home because she knew she had a chance for a better future. So we called them (her and her brother) to come and they came the next day bright and early at 7am! immediately she got attached to me and made friends with the others... adaptation to the rules and routine of the orphanage took a bit longer - but thats what makes her special!

What is volunteering and how does it differ to charity?

               A volunteer is someone who decides out of their own free will to actively participate in a cause that they believe in with the hope of improving the situation and help reach the aim of the cause or organisation.  

One can be a ‘free-lance’ volunteer by dedicating some of their time or resources for one or more voluntary organisatons without necessarily forming part of any organisation. For example one can be a volunteer at events organised by NGO’S, non-profit organisations or voluntary organisations. 

One can also be part of an organisation including the committee, group or community. This usually involves more commitment then the above and when one joins an organisation it is usually required and beneficial to believe in the mission statement of the group as one becomes a representative of that organisation.

Each volunteer can decide to dedicate whatever amount of time they have or any of their resources such as talents, knowledge, etc. 

               The difference between volunteering and charity is that volunteers actively participate in the organisations efforts to reach their aim of whatever cause they work on. Whilst charity is about donating money, tools, food, etc to an organisation without hands on experience. On the hand volunteers donate their time and raise money through various fundraising activities. Whilst a donor might not know exactly where the money is going and in some cases might have secondary reasons why to sponsor certain activities such as companies to create a positive image. The volunteer has lived and experienced the problems of the cause they work with and therefore can create awareness. It is important to note that most volunteers wouldn’t be able to proceed helping the causes they support if it weren’t for the generosity of donors and therefore they compliment each other. 

There are different types of people and different types of volunteers too but many volunteers will tell you that volunteering is a way of life. Through volunteering one gains experience, education and knowledge and therefore also gains from their voluntary experience. Volunteering also produces more socially conscious people. It forms communities and creates a sense of belonging, aim and motivation in life. It empowers people and gives them self worth. It also encourages people to aim and achieve more and brings out leadership qualities which will help in any work place and society in general. 

Volunteering is therefore very beneficial not only for society as it accounts for a large part of the working society which is not accounted for but also for the volunteer. A volunteer is therefore considered to have those special qualities which unites volunteers from all over the world.  I personally believe that everybody should try a volunteering experience, be it for a day or a longer period. It is entering a different world where one puts others before him/herself and can also experience the beauty of simplicity.

From Bukuumi to Biatorgby

Now I find myself in a small village close to Budapest. Here life is completely different. I have been here for a week already and know very few people of the village - there were no official introductions or speeches during mass and I blend in with all the others.
It is a nice village made up of big, well kept houses, but yet from what i heard, even though they have all of this most spend the days working, some are going through divorce and children are left with us at the playschool all day. All is well and good though because the school is good and they are treated well. I also am slowly caring for the children and enjoy their company as usual more than i enjoy that of adults.

so here i am volunteering in a play school, which i thought at first was one equipped for disadvantaged children, just as i thought this was more of a slum sort of village but i was wrong and so i was initially disappointed. Now i came to realise that i might not need to give these children as all the other children i previously worked with, but here i can still bond with them, because children are children and they use very specialised therapy for certain children which is very interesting to see and learn.
I will therefore use this stay to gain as much experience to help me with the children i will be working with in the future. in particular my little friends in bukuumi, which i will be going back to. I miss them.. my little ones..but these will help me fill the void whilst im here.

Back in Malta

So here i am back in Malta and still i feel that my heart is in Uganda. I miss the children..i miss them a lot, especially the thought that they are there alone, looked after but not getting the appropriate love and affection they deserve.
I did not have the time to update my blog whilst there because internet was limited... or more precisely electricity was very limited. In Kakumiro, we had it - occasionally - but it was never there in Bukuumi which is where i spent most of my time.
i get nostalgic, just thinking about how i used to spend my days - I had no electricity, no television, internet, computer or any of those gadgets built to entertain us but not once was i bored. Instead i had company of genuine people, innocent loving children, a sweet little toddler learning new things and the open air.

Now that i am back all what i can say is that as different as Uganda is to Malta and all what i knew before i found myself in a little community where everybody cared for each other, you are never alone, i enjoyed my time with the children, made true special friends and found a home.

I consider myself very lucky that I met the 'famous Germans' who introduced me to their project and hence my children - the children i am now so in love with. I was also lucky to find myself in such a special community of sisters - they became my friends and really were my sisters there. I also had the opportunity to help in the education system and had students who told me they now enjoyed english, where as before they used to hate it and found it useless. I was also looked after by the mission office who even though far away, they made sure to keep an eye out on me. I got all of the support and encouragement from my friends and family back home. So over all even if it was initially difficult, it turned out to be the best experiences in my life!!

Some photos of my stay in Bukuumi

3 weeks gone by

So three weeks went by already and finally i did all what i wanted to do..and that was stay with the children. Shortly after my arrival in Kakumiro - a very small village with just one road of shops and probably more cows than inhabitants-  I joined a German team who i met in Kakumiro where we were both residing on their orphanage project in Bukuumi.
Their orphanage project aims to help abandoned, poor children through their years of growing up by helping in school fees, accommodation, food, teaching them social skills and so on. This was perfect for me and from the first day i felt like i found what i came here to do.
I spent my days playing, singing, dancing, chatting, cleaning etc with the children and each day i aimed at bringing the children more and more love and affection and slowly slowly our relationship grew. from the begining where the children were just in awe of me but yet whenever i spoke to them they got so shy and nearly ran away to now where they come running to hug me to say hello, are always around me whatever am up to and even the boys are all cuddled up with me. These days have been very special!

So no till now i didnt see any animals, go to any falls, do any adventurous things, stayed in nice hotels, i played with the children, met people, worked with them and ate their food, i went in their house and met their families, i lived what africa is about!

1 week

So here i am in Kampala and already a week has passed by since my arrival here. Tomorrow I will be traveling to Kakumiro which is where I will be stationed.
the highlights(including negative things) of this week where:
- meeting the people of the mission office here
- going to kampala city and trying to fit in with all the craziness
- already suffering from chest pain due to the dust
- meeting matthew and going with him to the beach on his bike
- lovely dinner at the priests family
- seeing the abandoned children on the pavement and in the middle of the road
- being called muzunga constantly
- drive to mbarara
- meeting the priests of mbarara and making friends with them
- being invited to spend the whole day with a very nice family
- child running across the road just to see me
- getting used to nsambja, kampala, enough to walk around alone and being recognized by the natives


till now it is all good.. it a very different country, i cannot really compare it to anything we know! it is sad but nice at the same time...

Cairo Airport

So my journey begins... I am not at Cairo airport waiting for my next flight to Uganda... Already made friends and am in good company. Had very very kind barmen helping me out with the adapter for my laptop and after over an hour they manage to make my laptop work! so im here only thanks to them :)


even by just being in the airport one can notice the difference in culture..and im pretty sure i heard on of the guards tell me "money in hand please quick!" whilst walking through security check..but i just played dumb and got through obviously not paying anything!


hopefully i will be able to update you soon

Packing - all ready with my backpack!

 Changing the layout of my room..to be ready for me when i come back

Still Back Home

So, here I am still in Malta but all ready to go...I only have 3days left before I leave on yet another volunteering experience. This time my destination is Kibale, Uganda. I am going to be staying with the sisters and teaching in a vocational school.
Keep you update from there. 

Erika