AYUDH PORTRAITS: LILOU LICIUS

In April, we would like to introduce you to Lilou. She is a young Ayudhee who recently joined the French Civic Service at La Ferme du Plessis, near Paris.

Her journey begins with a passion, awakening her curiosity and guiding her towards new learnings and perspectives. These insights will mature into reflections, eventually evolving into yearnings for new intellectual and physical horizons, enabling her to discover herself. This path will lead her to the development of new experiences and skills, ultimately bringing her full circle, back to a library – the place where, perhaps, it all began.

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Lilou, 20

Lilou grew up in the south of France with two passions in life: dance and manga. At La Ferme du Plessis, during festivities, she participates in spectacles and talent shows, performing dance choreographies and teaching others how to do it. She wishes everyone to have passions that help them grow, much like mangas helped her become the better version of herself. Indeed, mangas opened her eyes to other perspectives, deepening her understanding of Japanese culture, tradition, history, values, and societal norms, as well as fostering empathy. What started with stories grew into a wider interest in the country and society. She began studying Japanese language at school to delve deeper into its culture until university, but dropped her studies later due to a lack of job opportunities.

For the last two years, Lilou has joined almost every Sunday the team of volunteers at ETW France in their homeless runs in Toulouse. This activity allowed her to further develop empathy, understanding, and solidarity. That experience made her aware of social issues, fostering practical skills such as communication, problem-solving, and resourcefulness, and also facilitating personal growth, including self-reflection and gratitude.

Soon, she felt called to deeper self-discovery, deciding to travel alone to India, and shortly after, she decided to undertake voluntary service, considering it a new opportunity and life experience. By living at La Ferme du Plessis, she gets the chance to experience different professional areas (such as gardening, social work, youth work, cooking, culture…), she wouldn’t have considered before, and she can now focus on those that are more interesting to her, like working in the library, for instance.