If you thought you were free from your parents for a year now, you are making a big mistake. Although they may not be there physically, they play a very important role in this year that you will be gone.

Their role is twofold:

1. Supportive

2. Motivational

It is very important for all agents to know that you have the support of your parents if you are going to au pair for a year. It would definitely be a very good thing to do to clear up any conflicts with each other in advance, before you go. If this is NOT the case, we can use our own judgment and therefore not send you.

You are going to a foreign country, environment, family, culture and if you are angry at home on top of that, then it is a very good recipe for failure. Because your parents are the ones who should support you; you should know that they are reachable in case you want to shed a tear, want advice on how to handle a child and how to cook rice, etc. They provide the secure base that you so need to make a success of the year. They are your anchor in a foreign world, that voice of mother is sometimes so necessary to hear again and father’s reassuring assurance that they are behind you.

Furthermore, they play the role of motivating you in times when you feel like you can’t and don’t want to anymore. Then it should be your parents who encourage, motivate, tell you again why you chose to do it and NOT say: “Come home, my child.” Then they should be there with advice, nice encouraging chats, maybe just send a recipe or two, make suggestions on how to deal with a naughty child, what to do when you feel things are getting too much for you. This is why they are so important, and if you are angry and don’t have their approval, you really have a problem here.

Of course, our agents also play a role in helping and motivating, but the very personal contact you have with your parents is missing. And who knows you better than Mom and Dad?

Of course, it is also difficult for your parents to see that my child is leaving home, and that is why we as agents can assist them more with advice. It is often very strange to us that parents shy away from calling the family every now and then and hearing if they are satisfied with you. You look after people’s most precious possessions, but your parents have also sent their most precious possession and therefore they have every right to talk to the host family from time to time. The host families have a very high appreciation for this and through it they also get the assurance that there are more people than just them who have invested in the project.

The icing on the cake is of course when your parents (or mom) can come visit you! Those who are not so fortunate to have their parents in Holland stand strong and support each other and make plans together. A year goes by so quickly.

And here I would also like to quote the following to the parents: 

Parents, you have given your children the roots that anchor them in life, but now also give them the wings to spread their wings.