Why Volunteer?

People ask me why I volunteer when I already have a full life. How do you fit it in?, they ask. My answer, How could I not?

Here’s a story about what I receive from volunteering.

Why Volunteer?

Anyone who knows me, knows how much I like words. The flow of a sentence that deems a sticky note on the side of the page. The quote that must be saved for future use. The image created by the words that are seared into your mind.

We all know that instant when you meet someone who has stayed in the same hostel you did in Machu Picchu, or someone who puts potato chips into their sandwich as you do. It is that kind of bond with a fellow word lover.

I met a lovely lady two decades my senior, dressed in a fashionable red jacket with ornate buttons, who loves words too. In our conversation about the type of books we prefer (non-fiction) we also discovered that we were both introverts, and liked garage sales. We talked about meditation, and simple living and connections however tenuous they might be with some family members. We both read because we both want to learn.

Saved between the Pages

I am not one of you, even though I am sitting in this empty chair. I am not homeless or damaged by drugs or alcohol with all my earthly possessions stacked under my table.

I see you sitting across me in this safe house filled with books. Your head is resting on your arms leaning on a dirty table, when was the last time you slept?

I see you sitting across from me holding a heavy paperback, looking, looking at the same page for the last half an hour. You have not turned a page. What do you see?

I see some others, pulling their briefcases and increasing the pace of their steps as they go by. They head straight to the elevators, don't look left or right towards the New & Notables section. Are they staff who work upstairs or have they made themselves so comfortable here that they look like they belong?

It's hard to tell sometimes, who is who and what your business is in this house of words.

The young girls behind the Second Cup counter have ignored the "F" bomb several times while I've been sitting here. They are accustomed to the irate and the irrational, they still smile when I approach for my second cup of coffee while I wait for my next presentation.

I am a writer and I too am looking for a safe place.

Lead

Twice in the last week in 2 very different sources, I have read about crustaceans (lobster/crab – take your pick!) escaping from the boiling pot.

From a business standpoint, the reference was to leadership. It mentioned how there is always someone brave enough to “rock the pot”, to escape the status quo and bring his brothers along with him. The article spoke of the remaining crustaceans, giving him a boost (with their own specific skills) which allowed the leader to lead them, and hence make changes that cause a shift in their working environment.

The second reference came from a female entertainer. Here again she spoke of the crustacean in the boiling pot. I was prepared to hear a similar story but her response came as a surprise. She spoke of how the women in her past had not offered the helping hand, how for the most part if someone escaped the heat, that they sat on the lid to prevent you from freeing yourself as well. How sad.

One pot, two experiences and here’s the question. Human being or crustacean, are you the one lending a helping hand, assisting your peers to be the best they can be or are you the one sitting on the lid?

Having just finished Anita Diamant’s The Red Tent, I could recap for you the story of Dinah’s voice in the Book of Genesis. However, the fellowship of women, the words used to describe their joy and their suffering, their absolute commonality to every woman who has walked this earth should be discovered on your own sofa with the beverage of your choice. Sisterhood must continue because stories are essential to make sense of life.

“Even those without family live in such close quarters to their neighbours that the cries of a labouring mother bring out other women like geese responding to the call of a leader in flight.”

Yesterday or today, assist your leader until you are one.

Start a Blog - check

So here I am on my first ever blog entry (is that what you call it?). Oh well, I will learn no doubt. A new adventure for me, and it's only the 4th of January.

Never at a loss for opinions, well goodgrief I am the expert of Me! am I not? I plan to talk about all kinds of Magic - magic that comes in photos I've snapped, books I've read, words I've been witness to and words I've put together in some kind of magical, poof! sort of way. And when you get to know me - I will even share about being single at 50+ and what its helped me discover about myself.

Cheers for today, but come back OK?