No ordinary, Love

by Dorottya Horváth (Hungary)

I didn't expect to find Spain

No ordinary, Love ***** I would like to tell a little about my vision, the story that got a stamp for a new beginning on the eleventh of September, 2017. The day I have received the answer of my acceptance to go on an adventure, to do a European Volunteering Service in a Spanish city called Elche. No Ordinary Love from Sade had been playing on the radio when I started to process the news of my next journey. I opened a new chapter and went almost to only focus on playing, dancing, self-expressing and fulfilling my desires in a different environment, with new people, surrounded by the “unknown”. (The yet not processed, in my dictionary.) I wanted to be able to play again, in order to have a chance to become a real grown up someday. I think many people would love the opportunity to rediscover themselves truly for the second, or for the first time. Or for the hundredth, or as many times as needed. I felt accepted as the person I really am, with all my silliness and childish behaviour, which also has its place, the questions are always the where, the how and with whom. I felt supported in my own ideas, that I have the power to carry out the projects that I have designed, and that whatever tools I needed, I had the opportunity to take it out, if I wanted to. I felt heard when I let others know that they have crossed a line, or that I think an other method could work better, or we could communicate more properly in order to have better results, I felt considered. I felt valued. I felt that my opinion matters, and that there is a place where I can let it out. I felt protected and guided with the frames, with knowing the exact hows and whens. My experience from the small circle that I had in Spain is that the people in general want to do things fueled by love and joy. We love to celebrate. Ourselves, others, everyone. We care about the outer cores, harmony and beauty to be honoured and we also care about inner cores, in letting flames burn, letting water be flowed in given spaces. I felt strong there, I felt I can overcome any fear, or that I will have the right amount of courage to conquer them. I felt like I can do me and still be a productive, needed member of society. I felt balanced. I think the reason it was so spectacular and mesmerizing is because I literally had no conceptual expectation. I knew I am going to make the best out of it and I felt like it will be a life-changing, eye opening-correcting and guiding experience. And it eventually was. It is, since then again. I have put new bricks of my system, the ones I can put and feel the weight on, and still know to be able to carry. Now I have a sense that there are ways for falling and for flying. In my opinion, we only need to distinguish between the movements, in terms of necessity and growing. We are all prepared for everything that is held on our way. expect (verb) 1550s, "wait, defer action," from Latin expectare/exspectare "await, look out for; desire, hope, long for, anticipate; look for with anticipation," from ex- "thoroughly" (see ex-) + spectare "to look," frequentative of specere "to look at" (from PIE root *spek- "to observe"). Figurative sense of "anticipate, look forward to" developed in Latin and is attested in English from c. 1600. Also from c. 1600 as "regard as about to happen." Meaning "count upon (to do something), trust or rely on" is from 1630s. Used since 1817 as a euphemism for "be pregnant." In the sense "suppose, reckon, suspect," it is attested from 1640s but was regarded as a New England provincialism. Related: Expected; expecting. Source: https://www.etymonline.com/word/expect I had really been longing for this experience, looking forward to see what's coming!