It was only four days, but so much happened that I can’t quite grasp what it all means. The trip was inspiring, encouraging and, I suspect, life-defining.
At the beginning of the school year, a man from Lidköping’s municipality came to visit us at the Economics program to tell us about a project he was wanting to start in Sarajevo. It was called Enterprise Democracy and would center around the topic of social entrepreneurship. The point of this project was to help mobilize Bosnian young people to get out there and bring change to their communities. Social entrepreneurship is a phrase I’d heard before but never really reflected over. Consistent to my enthusiastically impulsive way, I raised my hand immediately to be part of this project because it sounded big and exciting. But it wasn’t until this past week that I came to understand what social entrepreneurship really is. It’s when a person identifies a problem in his/her society and creates a way to affect change. This is done by mobilizing people in the community, not necessarily by lobbying politicians. This mobilization can take the form of a small business or a non-profit organization, or even a social movement. A percentage of the profits are reinvested into the community and the larger goal is to bring about a positive social change, not just to make money. Social entrepreneurship is something that’s well-developed in both the US and UK and is starting to gain momentum in Western Europe but has not yet taken root in most developing nations, Eastern Europe included.
The purpose of this trip was to be part of a seminar that would kick-start this three-year project. Two teachers from my program were invited and I was one of them! Not because I knew so much about economics or social entrepreneurship, but because I speak English (thank God for that!). The month of February was spent feverishly putting together a Power Point presentation of how we work within our program and what our values are as educators. For example, we stressed the importance of allowing the students to take their own initiative, think creatively, and work responsibly and independently. We also emphasized the importance of having an open dialogue between students and the teacher. This way of looking at education is very normal here in Sweden, but not so normal in Bosnia.
Now on to the trip itself: I purposefully avoid having expectations when traveling to a new destination. I don’t really see the point in trying to picture what it’s going to be like since I really don’t know. But I must admit that I had some pre-existing notions of how the people would be: guarded, reserved, maybe a little stiff and skeptical (one would expect this after years of being live sniper targets). But I found quite the opposite to be true. They are warm, welcoming, service-minded, and, most surprisingly, visionary thinkers! In my very limited observation, it seems that the first thing to be rebuilt in a country that has survived war or economic depression are the buildings. Money is poured into restoration projects while the people remain mentally closed and emotionally scarred. However, in Sarajevo, the buildings look much the same as they did during the war (you can still see the bullet holes sprayed across the façades), but the people themselves have come a lot farther in the restoration process. Don’t get the wrong idea here; there are still some major issues between ethnic groups that need to be resolved, but the war didn’t succeed in quenching their spirit, their warmth, or their ability to be open, at least with outsiders.
Check out the bullet holes:
There were so many inspirational moments during this trip that I’m having a hard time picking out one in particular to use as an example, but perhaps the most exciting thing was coming to a secondary school for IT students and sitting down with some of them and hearing them talk about their ideas for promoting social change. These guys were ON FIRE! And their teacher was so encouraging and really allowing them to take up space and discuss their vision for future projects. We came to give them ideas of what to do and how to get started, but I don’t think we really contributed that much to the discussion. They were already on a roll! I did get feedback though from one of the students afterwards who, in an email, expressed how grateful he was that we came and because of our encouragement, he now felt brave enough to advocate his cause with local school officials and politicians. He had been afraid to do so before because he was afraid of failing in his effort and he didn’t really know if there were people out there who thought the same way he did. His email was like icing on the cake. Imagine being able to, with just a few simple words of encouragement, lift a person and give them hope. That’s really all these young people need: someone to stand by them and encourage them to not give up. They have the ideas and the drive to get things done. They just need someone to believe in them.
So much happened in my own heart and mind during these few days, and it’s a bit hard to put into words, but basically I was just in a continuous state of awe at how God works (it feels like I’ve spent more than a year in this continuous state, but He just keeps surprising me). It’s like he was saying to me, ”Annika, I haven’t forgotten your dreams; the dreams that I have placed in your heart. And now that you’ve surrendered your will to me and committed yourself to the task I’ve placed before you, here’s a little added blessing on the side.” In 2006, while sitting at a desk in the office of ABANTU for Developent (the NGO I interned at in Accra, Ghana), I decided that I wanted to be the Secretary General of the United Nations. Crazy, insane, unrealistic - I know. But nonetheless my dream. And since that moment, I’ve tried to steer my life in the direction I thought would get me there. But God has placed detours in my life every step of the way. And it’s been frustrating, but only because I’ve been fighting Him. Now I’m living in a small town, working as a teacher, and committed to staying in my church for however long it takes to see change. How do I reconcile my reality with my dream? I smile, shrug my shoulders and say I'm not worried about it. For He's reminded me that if I am faithful in the small things, He will entrust me with greater things. All in His time....
