THE SPIRIT OF VOLUNTEERING..
Volunteering -
As I started to think about volunteering
at about 7 / 30 this Saturday morning, images that came to mind are ones of the
havoc the rain & floods caused in
Chennai last month, and the way in which volunteering helped rescue Chennai.
Volunteering - the word in essence speaks about the spirit of the person involved, his / her mindset, his upbringing, his mental strength in the face of adversity & above all his / her sense of compassion. In today's superfast world, volunteering can take many forms.
Volunteering - the word in essence speaks about the spirit of the person involved, his / her mindset, his upbringing, his mental strength in the face of adversity & above all his / her sense of compassion. In today's superfast world, volunteering can take many forms.
One can volunteer
to be a counsellor for drink / drug addicts, one can volunteer to write exams
for blind students, to teach computer or English to under privileged kids, to
clean the nearby temple, to sponsor the education of an economically
challenged kid & so on.
Ask any Chennaiite
whose house was flooded during last month's rains.I personally have seen
senior citizens being literally carried by faceless people to safety. I have
seen orphaned children being fed by helping strangers. High net worth
individuals, driving Innovas stopping at
a drowned colony & carrying packets of food on their backs to feed the
hungry. Nine months fully pregnant woman being taken to the hospital on a boat
& so on.
If these faceless volunteers were not there, what would have happened to all the above people ??
So, volunteering has changed lives. Lives of all
the affected people who were helped by these volunteers. These mentally &
physically shattered people were given a helping hand by these selfless
volunteers, who took it upon them to help these distressed people in times of
need. Helped them regain their feet, and stood by them till the worst was over
so that they can get back to their lives.
Further, volunteering
also changes the lives of the volunteers. Research has shown that it improves
the quality of life & health of
those who spend time helping others. Physical & mental problems of
everyone, & older people in
particular have been cured by the simple act of helping others on a regular
basis.
To summarize,
volunteering changes the lives of not
only the community but also the
volunteers in equal measure.
As the saying goes – HELPING HANDS ARE BETTER THAN PRAYING LIPS . .
. .
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