Purpose

"This is your life, are you who you want to be?"  One of my favorite bands, Switchfoot sings this quote in one of my favorite songs.  Every time I hear it, I think about my life and whether or not I am really doing everything I truly want to be doing.  I live close to family and am lucky enough to see them often.  I have a great job and own my own house.  I am making enough money to be comfortable, but everyone wants more, right?  I have supportive family and friends.  My life couldn't be better.  Sometimes I think about the little things that bother me - like driving behind someone who is driving too slow, getting stuck in traffic, a long line at the store, etc.  I get stressed out at work like everyone does and then I see a story on the news that I think about for days.  A story that showcases the greatness of humanity and how people donate and give to others.  It makes me want to do the same.  A lot of friends have had blogs for various reasons.  A challenge or trip they are chronicling.  I always love reading other people's adventures and never really thought about doing my own blog.  It might be lame, but I recently read about how people who blog (even if no one ever reads it) usually are happier.  It is a nice outlet for what I am thinking without forcing people to read my every thought on Facebook.  I am not an eloquent writer, but I still have a lot to say.  This entry will be long (I apologize ahead of time but promise to make other entries a lot shorter)! And so begins my experiment...


I did a lot of volunteering when I was in high school - mostly because it was required.  Of course I enjoyed it, but I didn't really seek out opportunities unless I needed to.  It was a nice way to pad my college applications while doing something nice for other people.  I would always gravitate towards organizations that helped kids or animals.  In college, I volunteered at juvenile hall and helped tutor kids that were in trouble with the law.  It opened my eyes to so many things.  How different two people's lives can be.  I was lucky enough to grow up in a family that enjoyed many luxuries so seeing young people who came from different circumstances was truly life changing.  It is still the most memorable volunteer experience I have had.  After college, I volunteered at various animal shelters and left every day wanting to rescue another homeless pet.  Since I currently have four pets of my own, clearly that would be a bad idea.  I always hear about great organizations and fun opportunities to volunteer but usually think "oh I don't have time for that" and move on.  Well, I do have time. 


Over the last few weeks I have signed up for a few worthy (in my opinion) volunteer opportunities and wanted to try to volunteer for many more over the course of the next year.  I thought it would be fun to chronicle my experiences and post various organizations and opportunities that others might want to join.  If I just inspire one person to volunteer after reading this, I have done what I set out to do.  Although I hope many more will decide to join in the fun, I know how busy life is.  From helping people locally, to abroad, my goal is expose all sorts of different things that can help others.  Whether you have one dollar or one hour, I urge you to give back.  You won't regret it.  It might even change your life.


M