This is the English translation of my song “EIN JAHR GUTES TUN” –
for everyone who doesn’t speak or understand German.
I wrote this song as a part of my resume for my FÖJ.
(explanation down below!)
It’s been one year
since I moved to Berlin,
and before that I didn’t know
what’s going to happen here
I never thought
it’s going to be the best time;
I learned so much,
colorful people everywhere
I’m doing a FÖJ
because I wanted to do something good for one year –
this year is almost over
and I’m walking in new shoes
My first real job,
a real fresh start –
I just started running
and I’ve never been frozen in fear
Beer, for the good of all –
that’s the concept,
doing something good while drinking –
a real recipe for success
But it’s about more than beer,
we’re not only here to drink –
economy for the good of all,
that’s what we’re standing for
So very versatile,
not one day is like the other –
I don’t know boredom,
we even went to demonstrations
Yes, a part of the economy
is also fighting for climate protection,
because we all have to fight –
only together we’re strong!
I mentioned it before,
I learned a lot,
gained many new experiences
and told everyone about it
This one year
changed so much for me:
I’m not who I was anymore,
I was smashing expectations
I learned being myself
and standing up for that,
because I know for sure
I will go my way
Thanks to everyone
who has accompanied me this year,
with you all
nothing of this
would have made any sense
FÖJ is the short form for a German concept called “Freiwilliges Ökologisches Jahr” (“voluntary ecological year”)
Basically you’re working for one year for a company/organization/… related to ecologics (mostly environmental and nature protection) without getting paid that much but you do it for a good reason. You support a company/organization/… that tries to make a difference in topics like sustainability, renewable energy, mobility/traffic, agriculture, animal care,… But it’s not only about doing something good, you can also learn a lot in this year. Not only work related but also about topics related to ecologics, politics, human interaction, and many more – honestly everything that’s important in life. Besides that you meet a lot of great people with the same beliefs and interests as you do. All in all a very good concept and I’m very glad I decided to apply for it!
I was working for Quartiermeister – a Social Business consisting of a company, a voluntary association and a non-profit organization. The company sells beer (but it wouldn’t make a difference if it was any other product) and collects a part of the income to support other associations and organizations through fundraising. Everyone can be part of the decision for who is getting the funding through an online voting as well as being part of the association in general. For the good of all!