I was so young when I first listened to the term “Subjectivity” at school. However, as a normal little kid we do not tend to go deep inside the meaning of the things we learn at school.
Surprisingly, it is now, a few years later, when I realised the real meaning of this term.
Subjectivity means perspective
Subjectivity means circumstances
Subjectivity means a number of values, cultures and environment.
And it is also now, that I’m slightly a bit older, (not too much though) that I’m dealing with people from different environments, cultures, circumstances and perspectives, when Subjectivity underplays an important role in my life.
Happiness, with subjective a unique meaning
For a Spanish person who has had everything he needed since he was born, the term “Happiness” has a subjective meaning that is not the same at all, compared to another person of my age from the United Kingdom, for example. Even people from the same country, same city, same neighbourhood, and same house, happiness will probably mean something totally different.
I asked some volunteers like me, what do they think “Happiness” means for them, and I also ask you, reader, what does it mean to you.
Kristina, a Ukrainian volunteer at “Romsko nacionalno vijeće”, believes that the term happiness is totally different according to your beliefs and culture. For her, living in an EU country is something that really makes cheers her up, as now, she can be aware of the many differences compared with some Asian countries (where she studied) and Ukraine.
Many volunteers agree that the fact of volunteer in Croatia has influenced a lot of their happiness in many ways. By meeting new people from different countries, learning new skills and languages and trying new activities.
Lilian, a volunteer from Local Democracy Agency Brtonigla – Verteneglio, underlined how living in a different place, with different vibes, different people and also being close to the sea, has totally impacted the way she perceives the world, the way she feels.
“Happiness is not just smile and laugh often in a period of time, is also the fact of realising who you are, what is the reason why you are living and appreciate the little things surrounding us” -said Matylda, a Polish volunteer in Pula, Istria.
What really matters for our happiness
However, finding ourselves in a totally new place for us, a new culture strongly different, and a new language that is practically new for us, might not be an easy matter.
Annaelle, a French volunteer in Split shared her thoughts: “As you’re on your “comfort zone” when you are in your own country, you don’t ask yourself many questions about who you are, you are just sort of living your life “automatically”. And it’s when you’re literally alone on a totally unknown place that you start to discover yourself more, since you are by yourself most of the time, and therefore, you are the only one who may decide what your day will look like. It can be a complicated moment, trying to understand what are the things that you like, who are the people that you want to discover, things that you don’t want, and start to notice a lot of little details about yourself, which finally creates a map of how you want to evolve. But at the end, you realise that it’s more useful than you think. After that, it’s just the best part you start to discover yourself, and it’s one of the most pleasant feeling in life. So, what makes me truly happy as a volunteer, is to learn better who I am, which brings me motivation, freedom, and obviously, happiness”.
Eduardo Zamorano
