Life-changing

As the date of my departure approaches, I find myself reflecting on how this experience will affect me. Will I want to step back into corporate life afterwards? Or will I just want to stack shelves in the local supermarket? Or will I become some sort of hippie dropout that people will point to and say, "she used to have a really good job once."

But I consider myself to be a pretty grounded person and my expectation at this point is that I will inevitability end up back on the hamster wheel. I just have the good fortune to be able to step off it for a while.

As a marketer, I'm a sucker for a good copy line. So when I started researching options for voluntary work, I was lured by the promise that "a conservation placement is the ultimate life changing and rewarding experience". But behind every great marketing line, there's always a legal team that wants to spoil the fun with an asterisk and some small print at the bottom of the page. Terms and conditions apply.. So when I received the booking form, my attention was drawn to the Limitation of Liability clause:

...clients undertake these programs and associated expeditions entirely at their own risk. Whilst we take every precaution to ensure the safety of clients, no responsibility can be accepted for any death, injury or loss that might occur...

So basically there is a risk that I may not come back alive. In that context, I suppose this experience will live up to the marketing promise that it could indeed be "life-changing".