A few days ago, I finished my ESC project at L’Espai de l’Actor, in Vic, supported by Fundació Catalunya Voluntària. The project lasted six months, I arrived on March 31st, and time just flew by – suddenly I’m catapulted back into my previous life. Right now, I’m living in a shared flat in Valencia, and I still haven’t fully processed that less than a week ago I was living in a masia, growing a vegetable garden, taking care of chickens, and worrying about the trees in the food forest.
We did so many things during these six months, but personally, what marked me the most from the beginning was the garden, which we looked after with the help of the Terra Fèrtil Association. Now I want a garden in my life. I want to grow my own vegetables, work the land. I’ll have to figure out how to balance urban life with rural life.
I also discovered that I love building things. There, we built the chicken coop, the greenhouse, the vermicompost bin. And wow — what a satisfying feeling! Now I also want a drill in my life (which is easier to get).
This is just a summary, but these months have been intense and full of learning. I’ve met wonderful people, gotten closer to Catalan culture (which I barely knew before), and visited beautiful places. There were also hard moments and conflicts – because we’re human and not perfect, so I won’t lie — it wasn’t all rainbows and sunshine. But in the end, we managed to deal with everything, and well, that’s part of the process too.
Honestly, my heart is full of gratitude, and I hope more people get to experience something like this.
– Sonia
