Over the course of my internship, I have gained knowledge, developed my skills and found a new confidence in me. I was brought out of my comfort zone, which had forced me to be open and take initiative in discovering and learning. I had to teach myself to learn how to navigate in Adobe InDesign and manage the WYA Google Ads account. My people skills were challenged when I had to entertain during events and network during UN excursions. I also learned not to avoid confrontation and to be ready for the unexpected. But besides the obvious working experience I have gained, which surely has improved my project management and interpersonal skills, I have also gained friends. A friendship that literally crosses seas and oceans.
There is E, short for his long, winding Nigerian name (Aboyeji Iyinoluwa), who is only 18 years old but a boy genius. He is a president in the making whose laughs resonates throughout the WYA house and whose flexible arms could become his own personal jump rope. Hailing from Scarnton, Pennsylvania, Joe is the resident gentleman. A thoughtful and generous guy, whose pantry shelf never runs low on food and a stomach that never seems to be full. Chiara, my bella meastra, is an Italian who loves anything American from its cupcakes and cheeseburgers to its homegrown designers Tommy Hilfiger and Ralph Lauren. Always caught in Facebook, she is as sweet and patient as an older sister. Despite the long history between Spain and the Philippines, Teresa had become my partner in crime. Full of energy and enthusiasm, she has braved get-togethers being the only minority in a room full of Filipinos.
The article was written by Jessa Cruz, World Youth Alliance Asia Pacific member who joined the 2009 International Internship, Summer Term in our New York headquarters.
