Testimonials from the Bulgarian team:
Magdalena: Play Out! was an interesting project for me and the team there was able to create and gather a truly amazing queer and inclusive community. I am grateful for being a part of it as it was quite refreshing and relaxing to be surrounded by so many wonderful people, and to have the opportunity to bond with some of them.
Nowadays, it’s so easy to get lost with the current pace of life, society’s high demands and the so called one dimensional approach to life, that oftentimes a person forgets to take a step back and have a time to reflect and process. However, Play Out! was able to offer just that and it made a difference for the whole learning process. At the same time the project was able to offer ambiguity, freedom of expression and a whole different perspective of sports. All in all, it was a lovely experience full of creativity and balance.
Elena: For me the Play Out! project was an opportunity to get to know myself and others better in the sense of queer community, united by sports and movement. Each day was filled with plenty of bonding activities, which gave us all a chance to get to know each other and enjoy our company by playing sports, walking, talking and creating beautiful memories together. The experience was one of a kind and I learned a lot about various topics, such as consent during sports and sharing a common space together with other people. I believe that topics such as asking for consent and receiving it, learning how to trust yourself and others and consciously putting effort into creating a safe space for yourself and others, are extremely important and the Play Out! project implemented them in a very engaging and fun way into the program.
Detelina: Play Out! was beautiful, both grounding and expanding, which not only let me connect deeper to my own body, but let me revisit hidden childhood memories of joy and connection. Through collaboration in teams we were able to get inspired and build a new foundation to our relationship with sports – One that rejects the previously accepted limitations and instead builds on a solid layer of self acceptance and love. For me this project was a way to fall deeper in love with my body and physical movement as a gateway to experience happiness. I feel very fortunate to have had the chance to be a part of this journey with the teammates, as well as sharing my own personal pathway with them. Being queer has its own set of challenges when relating to sports – whether they are explicit or implicitly part of the social structure. It’s a truly freeing experience to go beyond them and realise all the ways we ourselves are holding us back and to be free from outdated and unimportant judgement.
