Journey to a Better Me: Volunteering Abroad

Volunteering….one word can change a life, change someone’s views and change the world. Volunteering is something that EVERYONE can do, but not everyone chooses to do. Volunteering is one of the most valuable acts, yet it costs nothing, except your time. For a long time, I found myself thinking of all the great places I would like to volunteer, of all the change I would and could make, and then I would go about my business. I never signed up to volunteer; I never researched any volunteer opportunities. I just always thought “that would be a great volunteer opportunity” and then go on with my day. I guess I was satisfied with even just the thought of volunteering.

Years ago, when my husband and I first started dating, I had watched a show (maybe 60 minutes or similar) about Opera and all the great things she was doing in Africa. I told my husband that one day, I wanted to do that to. And again, it got swept under the rug and I went on with my life. I didn’t have “time” to volunteer, much less volunteer abroad. Who does that kind of thing anyhow?

It was a little over a year ago that I started looking at my life with a microscope. What had I done with it? What impact or mark had I made? Whose life had I affected? If I were to die tomorrow, what would be said about me? That I was a lot of fun and great to party with? That I lead a great life full of sitting on the couch, crafting and baking cupcakes? I really wasn’t pleased with who I was at the moment. Sure, I was a great person. I was considerate, caring, compassionate, etc. But I needed to be more. I needed to feel like a made a difference, that I touched and changed at least one life.

It was a week later that I signed up with United Planet, an international volunteer program. I agreed to volunteer in Tanzania for one month. Signing up for this program, I knew that one month wasn’t long enough to change the world, but it was all I could get off work, not to mention I was leaving my family behind. I was going to Tanzania to help teach English in one of their primary schools. I was so excited and nervous. I had no idea what to expect, so I left all of my expectations at home and went with an open mind.

WOW, is all I can say. I went to Tanzania hoping to change a life, make a difference and improve a life or two. I’m not sure what kind of impact I had on the children or people that I worked with, but I will tell you that I did change someone. I was able to alter someone’s perspective on life. I was able to give someone clarity and the ability to appreciate the simple things and learn how to put things into perspective. The person that I changed was me. Unintentionally, I changed. I didn’t bring this change on by myself. Every child that I came into contact with, every person that I converse with, people that I just sat back and observed….they changed me.

I’m not going to lie, I am sure that I made a small impact on one or two of the kiddos. I am sure I created some stories for them to tell featuring the “crazy white lady from America”, but those kids have given me so much more than I ever expected. They touched my heart, my mind and my soul. I could go on and on about what an amazing, life changing experience I had. I could share a hundred stories with you. But I won’t. Not in this post anyhow.

I just want everyone to know that volunteering abroad is an amazing thing. You touch the lives of the folks you come in contact with, but you also touch your own life. You improve yourself. You get to know yourself a little better. You get to see how strong you really are. You realize that you can overcome obstacles that you never thought you could. You are forced to try new things and look at new point of views. You are exposed to new cultures and ways of life. You are often outside of your comfort zone, but you learn how to accept it, deal with it and embrace it. You are able to make these discoveries though the people you meet during your volunteer work, through other volunteers and through experiences during your volunteer time.

I LOVED every minute of my experience and would do it all over again. I look forward to when I can do it again. For everyone that says they don’t have the time, or the money or the millions of other reasons why you could never do volunteer abroad, I want to tell you that is bulls*%t. You reconstruct your priorities, you save more and spend less, you figure out how to get your family involved with you if you cannot bear to leave them, you work it in around your vacation time. You put all the reasons aside why you can’t do it and focus on the reasons why you can! I guarantee you will not be disappointed that you did it!

For more information on volunteering abroad, you can check out www.unitedplanet.org or one of the many other organizations.

Some of my students