Close to the end of September, during an evaluation visit from Movit, I was asked if I could volunteer as a photographer on an event that was about to take place in Maribor, and after I heard there would be a number of youth workers from multiple countries and an interesting topic to talk about, I told myself „Why not?“ That’s how I got a peek at the Volunteering forum. And it was exactly that – a multi-day discussion about where volunteering work in the EU (and partner countries) is now and where to take it in the future. It was fascinating to get a much bigger and more abstract scope of things that happen in the field of voluntary work, and while it made me feel very small as an individual EVS, it also made me think that my work and giving the community is all the more important, because in the end, all volunteering starts with small, everyday things.
Right after that, I had to deal with preparations for my first ever photography exhibition! It was different from how I imagined it, but the fact that it gave me neither a hard time nor any bombastic feelings is a nice sign of balance. I’m still in disbelief over how so many people wanted to be a part of what I love to make, and I left the prints in Infopeka after the exhibition for models to pick up and keep.
Just as the exhibition ended, there was another thing to focus on, and quite a big one – StopTrik, the biggest festival of stop-motion around! I agreed to photograph the whole festival (and help work on video interviews with a few organizers and participants) because I’ve never been to an event about such a specific topic, and I was sure there was some interesting stuff to be seen and made and that there were people to discover. We had the most visitors so far this year, the whole selection of films was great to watch and even though it was stressful and demanding and it hit my energy levels hard, it was well worth it and it will stay in my memory for quite some time. If you’re curious what it was like, take a look at StopTrik’s website, YouTube channel or Facebook page.
The next blog entry may be my last one from Slovenia. November will most likely be cold, calm and „business as usual“ for me – doing graphic and photography work, helping out with workshops, meeting with volunteer groups. I’m not feeling sad that the end of this project is so close, and I’m already getting excited about how I’m going to deal with new challenges home. As the quote says: „The trouble with coming back home is that you’ve changed, but the place remains the same.“ Bring it on then!
Michal
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