January 21, 2010

Wass Albert, Hungarian writer's thoughts about Time

- Listen to me - he said grimly – once you promised something to someone, and you are not there, there are only two reasons what can be an excuses: you are dead, or as sick, ast you can not move!" You are not dead, I see. Well, what is the disease, let me call the doctor.
I told him anxiously in the dark, what happened. My grandfather listened without a word. When I ran out of words, he said. Seriously, in slow speech.
- Listen to me - he said. - There are people in this world, who toss it back and throw the words, and promises that have no value anymore. We, members of theWass family are not one of them. If we say something, it is like the stone. If we give our word, that we can, even if die in it! Do you understand?
- Yes, I understand – I faltered.
- No, you do not understand! - hit me with his words – but I’m going to explain it to understand. You see the gold watch in the pocket of my vest? My grandfather gave it to me when graduated from high school. When you’ll graduate, it will be yours. This watch is more valuable than any other nick-nack. But you can steal it. You can return it, or refund it’s price. Steal someone's horse, cow, ox, shot gun. Steal everything again and return it, or refund in price. Only one thing, if you steal from someone, could not be refunded. Never. And this is the Time! If you steal someone's time, you steal something you can never give back. Never can retrieve. The time you spent on waiting can not be brought back by no power on Earth. It does not exist anymore, it has passed over. Lost forever, and you were the one who is the cause of this irreparable loss. Do you understand?
And I understood. I understood as much, as from that day when I give someone my word, then and now that I'm here or there - I get there five minutes before the time, even if there are crones falling from the sky, as my dear old grandfather used to say. I brought up like that my children and also my grand children. Not because it is late, bad manners, but it's more than that. Who is five minutes late, five minutes swiped of someone's life, what could never be approved.

- Even the enemies trust the people who are reliable – as it was said by my grandfather - because trusted people are the crags of the society, which can be incorporated into the country. The others are rubbish, what will go with the wind... "
(Wass Albert: My grandfather taught)

First, starter post

A try for a description about me - from an interview

Introducing ourselves is always a hard thing... at least for me.
I was always interested in exchange program things, but have never been in one and I'd like to change that.
I'm in my first year at university studying Social studies.
I do that because I'm interested in people, and society.
I like to "analise" people, to watch, to hear, to connect and be connected to them. To call them friend and make them calling me a friend.
Connection is a very important thing in my life. If I ever get really in touch with somebody or something, it remains there for a long time. Lifelong.
My family is really important for me. They taught me the love of travelling and to be open minded and tolerant. And I've got a love for languages through my family too, because I was grown up in an "international" family. (Romanian roots, living in Hungary, having relations in England...
Because of this I can speak and write Romanian fluently.)
And because of this I travel more. This kind of distance showed me that limits in between countries does exist only on maps, not in our souls.
I also believe in an idea of Pangea. The separation of the water between the continents doesn't mean that we can't unit it. People built up lots of bridges and made it not just phisically.
I believe that all of us is a piece of a "bridge". And together we can be a Pangea, again. I'd like to join and to became a piece of the Camp's bridge. :)

I love challenges, travelling and to feel that I can turn myself to useful things. I think, this camp would be a 3 in 1 thing from this point of view.

I don't have too much experience, but I've been a member of a Stundents' Volunteer Group in my secondary school years. And in those times I got in touch with many situations and many (types of) people, and really enjoyed it. I've tasted that how is it to be a group leader, but more times I was a "background" helper.