Why do you want to be a Peace Corps volunteer? What is your motivation?
Ever since the summer before ninth grade, I have spent a majority, if not all, of my summers involved with service related opportunities. From aiding children with cerebral palsy to training with the American Red Cross chapter in Richmond, I have had my taste of service experiences. I started to get involved with service related programs because of my older (and according to her, much wiser) sister. With the intention of helping me become a competitive candidate for college, she made it her top priority to find a place for me to volunteer every summer. Initially, my ideal way of spending two and half months of freedom involved anything but responsibilities. Surprisingly, waking up early to volunteer and spend time with different kinds of people soon became worthwhile. Eventually, I developed an impressive resume for college, which brought me to the University of Virginia. Yet, when I reflect on my past summers, I now realize how each volunteer program provided me with an invaluable experience far more important than a well-crafted college application.
What started off as an obligation quickly became a privilege. I was consistently amazed and encouraged by the different kinds of people whom I met. I experienced the joy and humility of helping cancer patients smile during the most trying time in their lives, the genuine beauty of life beaming through the face of a child living with cerebral palsy, and sheer elation while building a house with two rooms for a family of five in Guadalajara, Mexico. And I will always treasure the shared moments of accomplishment and glimmers of hope for promising futures while teaching basic English words to children in the Dominican Republic. In the end, I realized that the people I served have had a bigger impact on my life than I have had on theirs. I have always heard this to be true, that in giving one receives much more. I guess that’s the thing about truth—it never quite hits home until a person experiences it firsthand.
My experience in the Dominican Republic reaffirmed my desire to volunteer abroad. Upon returning to the States, I recognized that I live in a comfortable and confined world, much like a snow globe with clear boundaries and limits. I know that the larger part of the world is more than the university I attend, the movie theaters I frequent, or the sports I religiously watch on ESPN. I know there are literally millions of people outside my secure world who need more than just a helping hand during a short summer period. And I know wholeheartedly I want to serve as a Peace Corps volunteer because, as cliché as it sounds, I want to make a difference. I know I can’t change the world, but if I can help just one more person other than myself, I’m satisfied. At one time volunteering was a way for me to achieve my goals. Today, volunteering is a way for me to help someone else achieve his/her goals.
"we Rise together.. we Rise together.."- flobots, "rise"
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5 comments:
i wonder if you'll get more than 2 comments.
and this time, from your friends.
i shoulda never told u to volunteer. it's overrated.
stay homebound.
Thanks David for sparing some time to see me other day. Recently, I wrote a paper about the social structure and the impact of a role model has on an individual. I basically wrote that a role model is what shapes you despite what the norm is. I have to say, I thought about whom I considered as my role models and you were definitely one of them. You were a good friend whom was there for me, and never did I feel uncomfortable sharing my deepest secrets. I know that I'm really weird and hard to talk to sometimes, but you definitely had a huge impact on my college life. I thank you and I will be reading your journal like my chemistry text book. haha.
peace corps smeesh pore!
jk.
kind of.
happy i commented? i never have any idea what to say~
I can't remember how I came across your blog, but I added it to my list of "favorite blogs" a while ago.
I have one more year to go before I can toss that cap, and the peace corps is something I've been looking into for a while.
I started keeping up with your post sometime after you arrived in Mozambique, so I never got a chance to read this post.
Just wanted to say thanks.
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