The House Assistant Experience

(article for Communicating, Guides Vic Mag)

Have you ever had a moment when you wished you could be someone else, in some place anywhere other than where you are? It was within one of those moments that I took a giant leap of faith and made the choice to uproot my life and move halfway around the world to play housemaid. In a moment of insanity, I decided to volunteer myself for five months to do one of the craziest jobs I have known to date.

The location - Pax Lodge, one of the Four World Centres. Pax Lodge in one of the busiest cities in the world -London. Pax Lodge, the place where strangers soon are friends. Yet as I sit here now, nearly seven months later, I know that the staff here are more than friends. They have become family.

I spent my English summer cleaning up after 100s of guests from all around the world, all of them sisters in Guiding and Scouting. But the experience of being a House Assistant goes beyond bed making, beyond dishwashing, beyond house tours. It is about the people you meet, the things you learn and the memories you create. Yes, there were days where the workload seemed impossible. But right there next to you are some of the most amazing people you’ll ever meet. There to help you. There to support you. That is what the Guiding Movement is about. The People.

So when I was offered a further twelve months at Pax Lodge as the Booking Assistant, I jumped at the opportunity. There are days I find it hard to be so far away from family and friends. And yet on the flip side I know this is an opportunity unlike any other and an experience I will never forget.


Rachael M
Booking Assistant

North Metro Region