a volunteer's bliss

My journey as a volunteer has been so worth it! I would never trade the joy that comes with freely giving myself to serve for anything else in this world. I have been a volunteer for close to ten years. My motto is "do good anyway"! In life, no one owes you any kindness but you owe yourself the happiness that comes with doing good. It is not about what someone acknowledging what you do, it is about rising higher than the need to be recognized for doing good. It is about shining a ray of love in someone's life. It is not all about what you do but with what heart and intention you do it with. Volunteering teaches even the coldest of hearts connect with their selfless self.

My volunteer projects have ranged from offering to wash churches on Saturdays, babysitting for neighbours so that they can get time to do something they have not had time to do for long because they were overwhelmed by Parenthood, cleaning up police stations, volunteering to cook in homes of the less privileged, educating pedestrians and motorists in the streets on the importance of peace amongst many other activities.

One thing though that many don't realize is that volunteering is not for the faint at heart. There are many challenges that come with it. The biggest being the doubt that humanity serves you when you are volunteering. It is a sad fact that humanity is so used to evil that it is hard to imagine someone doing good without an ulterior motive. I have been mocked, ridiculed and even insulted in the course of my volunteer work, but that is not anything worth deterring me from pressing on. I continue doing good anyway!

My greatest reward for being a volunteer is the genuine smiles and happiness I leave those I served with. In my opinion, there is no currency in the world that can ever be higher in value than a genuine smile served from a grateful soul. I will spread love around this world like it's a virus. I will encourage those around me to volunteer and remind humanity that we all have a helping nature inside us, we just need to step out of our comfort zones to activate it.

Post by Petra Neemah, Intern

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