L'erasmus: another seed

six months to discover myself

Some time ago, I was a guest on Antonella Crisafulli’s YouTube channel. She is a career counselor with Asnor, specialized in guiding young people who want to have an experience abroad.

Here’s the second chapter of my life abroad: Erasmus.

By the way, do you know what it is? Go to the end of the article to find out!

At 19, I was volunteering for an association that required anonymity—no one, except other members, was supposed to know we were part of that group.

Like Fight Club: the first rule is you don’t talk about Fight Club.

I could have told my parents. But they didn’t support me: there were other priorities, it was a waste of time, it could be dangerous, and so on.I did what every child does: I said yes, and I kept going anyway. Not only that, I was a particularly active member: I gained self-esteem and self-efficacy from it.

I also learned another lesson: if I wanted to make something happen, I had to do it without asking anyone’s permission. I had to give myself that permission.

First year of university. International and Diplomatic Sciences. My Erasmus path started there. Of course, there was the language problem. To be safe, I chose English and French (it was a dream to finally be able to learn it!!). English had always been a struggle for me. But French came naturally. It was—and still is—the language of my heart.

I discussed the Erasmus program with my family but received the same response I had gotten about volunteering. So, I did what every dreamer does in these situations: I applied.

My French teacher even wrote a letter of recommendation to include with the documents, so I would have a better chance of being accepted. That year, the bank advanced the money for the room rental. My university tutor helped me fill out the forms, reassured me, and supported me before and throughout the whole experience.

I won the scholarship for the University of Lyon. The real problem was telling my family. Too many fears, too many “buts,” too many walls. Fine—but I was going anyway.

On January 8th, they took me to Lyon. It was a beautiful sunny but cold day, with a bright blue sky. The city was huge, the campus enormous, the apartment a 17m² studio complete with a kitchen, a neighbor with a pet mouse, and a shared laundry room.

My mother sewed little curtains for the windows.

My tutor managed to get me approval for a mountain of exams I would have to take in French—ça va sans dire. And I passed them all. Basically, I got two semesters ahead in just one.

Erasmus was also a time of solitude. I felt a bit stupid because, outside of classes, I didn’t understand anything the other students were saying.In that space of uncertainty, what kept me going was the desire to live my life fully, the need to know myself, and the will to prove I could make it. And I really did.

Certain experiences didn’t so much change me as help me discover—beneath all the duties and expectations of others—who I truly was. Deeply.

If not being understood and not being able to understand during Erasmus caused me some pain, in later experiences I found it became a great ally. But I’ll tell you about that in the next chapter.

The Erasmus program is a European Union initiative that allows university students to spend a period studying or doing an internship abroad in another European country.

Erasmus+ is the evolution and expansion of the program: in addition to students, it also includes teachers, trainers, young people, and organizations, offering opportunities for study, training, work, and volunteering both in Europe and in non-European countries.