Reasons and challenges

 Finding volunteering and practicing it completely changed my life. It is a world of giving to others without asking for anything in return. A world where money is not the most important thing or not important at all. Volunteering for a cause that is important to us helps us to show and feel gratitude – a key component for our well-being and happiness.

The greatest gift you will receive when you volunteer in the right place is the smile of the people you are helping, to feel useful, and to find someone else who have the same values as you. Sharing and creating stories and experiences gives you the benefit of learning more about yourself, others and the world – it’s priceless.

With your actions you can:

– Be an example;

– Leave a mark;

– Make the world a better place;

– Make someone remember you for a lifetime;

Sometimes you will find yourself in a difficult situation, sometimes you may be uncomfortable, yes, it is a responsibility, no, you will not be paid, but it will always makes you grow as a person.

Challenges

Perhaps the biggest challenge is the lack of understanding from the people around you and feeling so powerless in the face of questions like:

– Why are you doing this?

– They will not pay you!?!

– What’s the point?

– Where do you go all the time?

– Someone else can help, why are you wasting your time?

– When will you find a real job?

I wish it could be answered once so that no one would have to explain it again. There are two kinds of people: the one who needs all these answers, and the others who really understand (the world needs more of you guys…).

So why? Do you remember when you tried to buy expensive beautiful shoes / dress / car / jewelry, etc. that you don’t really need, to be happy and enough for a while? Well, that’s why people decide to volunteer – to feel happy, but for longer, not by buying, but by giving.

Why don’t they pay you and what’s the point? – Doesn’t the word “help” already rule out the possibility of receiving money for it? When your friends and family ask you for a favor, do you take out the calculator and the terminal to charge them? Can you charge a homeless person or a child without parental care? True, some people can, I would love to hear their reasons.

Where is the volunteer all the time? – The world is big and beautiful, and life is limited. How can we see and feel everything from the couch or from a book? There are also people who write books about their experiences, I personally prefer to be this one.

And yes, someone else can do it, but if 100% of people think so, there will be no one to help. We are the change and we cannot complain about anything if we do nothing about it. If you change the world in a positive way, is it a waste of time?

The real work thing… – Yes, the volunteers have a real job. We all have a bad habit of eating 3 times a day… Most of them volunteer after work or use their vacation for this.

So maybe once you got the answers to all these questions, next time you will have the power to do your friend a favour by supporting their cause, not by judging them! I wish you to do it.

The article is part of the project “Forest tale” of AYVOB, funded by ESC of the EU.

12.04.2021

Antoaneta Toncheva