Embracing Flexibility

Maddie (right) enjoying her kayak down the river with Izzy (left).

This summer, I had the opportunity to visit Peña de Horeb in Spain with some members of the One Mission Society team based in Hungary. As the intern based in Hungary for the summer, I was specifically sent to assist in the process of setting up QuickBooks for the camp, as well as to work with the team coming in from the States in a host capacity. Beyond these tasks, I learned so much about the importance of flexibility and connecting with new people, even for just a short time.   

“The theme of this summer really has been about forging connections with people, and it all started with these moments at Peña in Spain.”

I think one of the biggest challenges I have struggled with is being flexible when plans change. Spain really helped me to practice flexibility while working through setting up my own structure that catered to my needs. When we were in Spain, we were helping with some camp maintenance and handled daily tasks for feeding the work teams. Personally, I made sure to volunteer for different activities according to a schedule that worked for me, but I also had the willingness to jump from one thing to another when necessary. On one occasion, I started off pulling a million weeds out of a house yard and later transitioned over to the kitchen to help cut veggies. I was able to chat with some of the team about their life and experiences while still completing the jobs that needed to be done. Being flexible with the types of jobs and the daily schedules facilitated a lot of cool experiences and conversations. We were able to kayak on the river outside the camp by effectively balancing it around the weather and work commitments. Furthermore, I had some cool conversations as I helped in the kitchen each day. The theme of this summer really has been about forging connections with people, and it all started with these moments at Peña in Spain. 

In the past, I would discredit the significance of making relationships work if I anticipated only knowing them for a short period of time. However, even when working with the short-term missionary couple for the first few days, I came to realize the importance of having different types of connections with people and how much I love working with individuals who all have different perspectives. Over the week that I was there, I tried to seek different people out, initiating conversation and listening to stories about their experiences. I worked with the team at a serving level but also built connections that I am taking home with me in both learning experiences and people that I can reach out to in the future.  

I am very thankful for my time in Spain and am blessed to have learned a lot from my short time there. I encourage everyone to embrace flexibility and the unique connections you can make when you are willing to be open to conversations and potential friendships.