Justyna Szmidt, PolandI am Justyna Szmidt from Warsaw, Poland. I have been a Border Guard Officer for 16 years and in my last position I was the spokesperson of the Commander in Chief of the Polish Border Guard. European Union Monitoring Mission is my first mission abroad, but not the last, I hope.
I live and work in the centre of Poland. I have my own garden, which is full of flowers. I am a person who likes people, life and changes. I enjoy travelling, camping, Nordic walking, skiing, reading books, cooking and taking pictures. I also do yoga and am very keen on decorating interiors. In the future, I would like to do this professionally.
I joined EUMM in Georgia in March 2014 and was assigned to the Field Office Zugdidi as a monitor in the Administrative Boundary Line (ABL) Team. This assignment gives me the opportunity to see the practical actions of the EU mission in this part of Georgia. In addition, the type and nature of my daily service are very similar to those that I deal with at home in Poland.
I think that each day in this mission is a memorable moment on its own. Before my arrival in Georgia I was wondering what life would be like there, what kind of people I might meet. Each day shows me that even if lives of some Georgian are difficult and hard, they are able to find the strength to smile, to make conversation and give a friendly gesture.
Almost every day is full of meetings with interesting people. I most enjoy meeting and working with extraordinary people.
I remember one such hard day when I was standing near the ABL and suddenly a small boy came to me holding flowers in his hand, just picked in the garden of his parents and handed them to me. My heart glowed and softened... this is to me a priceless aspect of my work - direct contact with the local people.
One message that I would like to send is that steadily growing number of tourists visiting Georgia every year indicates that it is an interesting place which is certainly worth visiting.
I hope that thanks to the presence of EUMM, people will live here more safely, even though the memory of the recent conflict is still alive.
I live and work in the centre of Poland. I have my own garden, which is full of flowers. I am a person who likes people, life and changes. I enjoy travelling, camping, Nordic walking, skiing, reading books, cooking and taking pictures. I also do yoga and am very keen on decorating interiors. In the future, I would like to do this professionally.
I joined EUMM in Georgia in March 2014 and was assigned to the Field Office Zugdidi as a monitor in the Administrative Boundary Line (ABL) Team. This assignment gives me the opportunity to see the practical actions of the EU mission in this part of Georgia. In addition, the type and nature of my daily service are very similar to those that I deal with at home in Poland.
I think that each day in this mission is a memorable moment on its own. Before my arrival in Georgia I was wondering what life would be like there, what kind of people I might meet. Each day shows me that even if lives of some Georgian are difficult and hard, they are able to find the strength to smile, to make conversation and give a friendly gesture.
Almost every day is full of meetings with interesting people. I most enjoy meeting and working with extraordinary people.
I remember one such hard day when I was standing near the ABL and suddenly a small boy came to me holding flowers in his hand, just picked in the garden of his parents and handed them to me. My heart glowed and softened... this is to me a priceless aspect of my work - direct contact with the local people.
One message that I would like to send is that steadily growing number of tourists visiting Georgia every year indicates that it is an interesting place which is certainly worth visiting.
I hope that thanks to the presence of EUMM, people will live here more safely, even though the memory of the recent conflict is still alive.