Venice Marutha

I arrived in Berlin on the second week of February to join my Austrian host family, who were excited to have me as their first Au Pair in their home for the next 12 months. Things have gone according to plan, my trip had no complications at all and the family I chose couldn’t have been any better. I was about to start a life in one of the coolest and most diverse city in the world. I mean the is absolutely nothing as refreshing as that thought, “A life in the city that never sleeps”…

A couple of weeks after my arrival things began to intensify, lockdown restrictions had to be adhered to and social distancing became real. I was obliged to accept that those amazing chakalaka Saturdays with my south African community had to pause, the uplifting Sunday praises in Hillsong church was shut-down. I couldn’t attend my language course by any means, I wasn’t allowed to walk with more than 1 person. It was surreal, it was hard, I bet it you it was one crazy time!

Being in lockdown is understandable, of course it’s not easy but doable. However, being stuck in one place with a completely new family you hardly know can be a nightmare, but it is in such situations where we learn to make things work. My host mom calls it the” coping mechanism” but I think it’s all about perspective, you just got to see light no matter how slight.

“You find peace not by rearranging the circumstances of your life, but by realising who you are at the deepest level”

The hardest part during this season was having to see my friends who lost their loved ones and had no means by any chance to make it home and say their last goodbyes. I cannot imagine how profound and emotionally draining this could have been for them, but I know for sure that this took a toll on me too. It was tough, the pain was and still is unbearable, it’s almost impossible for one to heal from such a wound…

One book that really impacted me is The secret, I cannot stress enough how this book literally changed things for me. Your thoughts become your life, change the way you think and you will change the trajectory of your life. A constant reminder of that kept me going in tough times. Keep going, have hope and trust the process, we always come out stronger on the other end. The light is always there, no matter how slight! My everyday reminder.