訪問專欄 INTERVIEW｜ 王鉫茜 Jessie Wong

今年暑假，我們很幸運地有來自馬來西亞的實習生Jessie和我們一起努力。在他盡心盡力的付出和和孩子熱絡的互動中，他完全展現了對孩子們的愛。我們和孩子們都會想念他燦爛的笑容，同時也明白他一定會隨時掛心著嚮光和嚮光的孩子們。

Daisy: 你是在何時、如何得知嚮光協會?為什麼想成為嚮光實習生?
Jessie: 當時是在indeed的網頁上得知嚮光正在招聘實習生。聘文略述了嚮光的核心，即透過兒童藝術創作，向孩子傳達一個友善包容及注重環保的世界。由於藝術和環保都是我較關注的領域，便有了進一步了解的念頭。瀏覽了嚮光的資訊後，受他們曾舉辦過的活動及理念深深吸引，就毅然投了履歷。

D: 你覺得嚮光與其他組織有何不同之處?或是嚮光在做的事與 其他組織有區別，這有什麼重要的意義?
J: 嚮光很注重孩子的自主能力，也很願意聆聽孩子的聲音。在服務孩子的過程中，不會把孩子當作『客人』，而是讓他們獨立完成一些簡單的任務。譬如在活動中所使用的餐具必須自己清洗，場地必須一起還原。另外，嚮光愛護環境的宗旨，也實踐得非常透徹。從零塑料到植物性飲食，無所不及。待在嚮光這短短的三個月內，我也發現自己受了不少影響，成為一個更友善的地球公民了！

D: 在參與嚮光培力工作坊的過程中，有什麼有什麼值得紀念的時 刻或與孩子們的互動讓您印象深刻?
J: 一些孩子得知我來自馬來西亞後，會主動來和我聊天，表達他們對馬來西亞的好奇心。像是曾有孩子請我教他們馬來語，還跟我分享他們所關注的馬來西亞youtuber。能藉此和他們進行文化交流，是一份小確幸呀。而最近一次到清泉時，一個孩子挽著我的手臂說，「你上次有來跟我們一起玩水對不對！」被孩子記住的感覺真的好棒，我想大人有時挺需要一些小小的朋友，來喚醒自己的赤子之心。

D: 是否有因為實習或與孩子互動，改變你未來處理問題或與孩子相處的方式?
J: 有的。像是近期在帶營隊時看到小朋友吃力地拉著大大的行李箱走上坡，以往的我一定會直接上前幫忙，但現在只是默默在後頭觀看，確認他可以自己完成後，再給予肯定的言語。嚮光和孩子相處的模式提醒我，孩子的能力很多時候其實遠超乎大人的想像，要放手讓他們嘗試或成或敗的滋味，才能更加堅強地長大哦。

D: 你是最早參與「嚮光遠景計畫」的實習生之一，這個計畫提供了青少年們最需要的一對一引導和培訓，你對此計劃與其對青少年的影響有什麼看法呢？
J: 嚮光的遠景計劃方起頭不久，在這短期實習中我也有幸參與了策劃、籌備乃至實際培育遠景的孩子這些過程。事實上，在短時間內可以教給孩子的並不多，遠景計劃只能專注在孩子最需要的培訓上，而每個孩子的狀況與特質又都不同。慢慢了解一個孩子真正的需求之後，再擬定訓練的內容，就花費了一半的時間。然而它的意義在於讓孩子在真正進入求職階段前，了解自己所缺乏的能力，並盡可能在嚮光這座溫室中，預先自我調整。嚮光對孩子的表現同樣就事論事，但著重引導、改正，而非批評、斥責。除了處事應變能力，遠景計劃也包含一些基本常識的教導，譬如履歷的撰寫、面試技巧、職場禮儀等，都是我覺得十分重要的。 

D: 實際在培力營與孩子面對面後，在辦公室的實習的時候心裡 是否有不同的轉變呢?
J: 這是一定的，實際接觸了孩子，和他們變得熟悉，才會知道活動中哪些部分可依據他們的需求作調整。再者，看到孩子享受在活動當中，就覺得事前付出的時間與精力都值得啦！

D: 你對孩子們有什麼期望，或是你能夠做什麼？
J: 希望孩子能夠勇敢地把眼界放得更高遠，也相信自己可以做的還能更多更多，有一天也可以成為那個將小小火光帶到世界八方的人。因為世界不會停止糜爛，唯有人們不願丟棄愛的能力。

加入我們實習生團隊！或歡迎來當大朋友志工！

We were very fortunate to have our Malaysian intern Jessie onboard through the summer. She exudes absolute love through her dedication to work and her interaction with the kids. The children and us will miss her smile but know that she will always be on the lookout for us!

Daisy: How and when did you find out about Bright Side Projects and what made you want to become an intern?
Jessie: I first found out about Bright Side Projects when they were recruiting interns on Indeed website.They briefly depicted their core values, that would teach their principles of an inclusive and eco-friendly world to children through creative arts programs. This piqued my curiosity since arts and environmental issues have always been my interests. After browsing their website, I was attracted by their events and concepts, thus decided to send in my resume.

D: What do you think are unique characteristics to Bright Side Projects from other organizations?
J: BSP often emphasizes the children’s autonomy and are willing to listen to the children’s voices. They don’t treat the children as “customers” but actually have kids tasks to independently complete.For example, children were asked to wash the tablewares by themselves, and should help restore spaces after workshops. Bright Side also practices their motto, which is caring for the environment, from zero-plastic to vegan meals. I am happy to realize that I have become a friendlier earth citizen too after these three months of short term internship!

D: Any memorable moments in the workshops with the children?
J: Some children would reach out to me out of their curiosity after learning I am from Malaysia. Some of them requested me to teach them Malay, some of them show me the Malaysian Youtubers they have on their subscribed list. It is my pleasure getting this chance to engage in a mini cultural exchange with them.On the last Chingchuan I  went to, a child asked, while locked arm in arm with me, “You were here with us for our graduation at the sprinkler party right?”It feels so good to be remembered by the children. I suppose adults sometimes need to make some younger friends to remind themselves of their innocence, perhaps!

D: Has this internship or moments in interacting with children through Bright Side Projects brought about any changes in how you approach issues/kids in the future?
J: This is for sure! For example, I was in a children camp recently, and watched the kids climb up the hill with their huge luggage. Previously I would instantly give a hand to them yet this time I choose to stay and watch from behind. I would reward them words of affirmation if they made it on their own. I have learned that the ability of children is so much more beyond our imagination from the way Bright Side get along with their children. All we need to do is to let go, make sure they have the chance and space to go through the ups and downs of life on their own, because only then they will grow stronger.  Yes of course, after face-to-face interaction with the children and becoming more familiar with them, we made amendments on our events and our routine according to their actual needs. Other than that, seeing them enjoyed so much during the events would make me feel that the efforts and time paid were worth it!

D: You were one of the first interns to participate in our Brighter Futures program providing much needed dedicated one on one mentorship and guidance to our youth in their apprenticeship. What are your thoughts on the program and it’s impact to the youth?
J: Brighter Futures is a program that has really only taken off recently and during my internship I was fortunate enough to have become a part of the process from planning, preparing, and cultivating a visionary apprenticeship for children. The time was relatively short, however, so not much can be taught to someone in this amount of time so we had to focus on the training that the individual child needed the most. 

This would be based on each child’s situation and characteristics thus could only be implemented after slowly understanding their real needs; developing tailored content took half the time. However, the step is still crucial as we need to permit the child to be able to try and then assess where they might have had failure or success and understand the abilities they lack they need that will help the during their career.


D:  How has it been working in the office as an intern and being able to tie that in with the importance of the work Bright Side does with the children when you see their faces?
J: Yes of course, after face-to-face interaction with the children and becoming more familiar with them, we made amendments on our events and our routine according to their actual needs. Other than that, seeing them enjoyed so much during the events would make me feel that the efforts and time paid were worth it!


D: What are your hopes for the children or what you can do?
J: Hopefully they are courageous enough to have a more comprehensive view in life, have faith in themselves as they can do so much more than what they can imagine. Someday they may become one of us shining a light onto others, since the world will never stop deteriorating, only we can keep holding tight and make things better by our ability to love.

Welcome to join in our events or if you can read and write Mandarin fluently, join us as an intern!