thoughts and aspirations

My volunteer peeps. 

A few years back, when I was in college, I heard about International Students Volunteer. An organization that offers students the opportunity to travel overseas to volunteer their time for great causes. My girlfriend -who was attending San Jose State at the time- mentioned to me she was going to Europe to build a nesting area for animals that are going extinct. My heart melted. I looked up the program, discussed the plan with my parents, signed up, and packed my bags. I also chose to go to Europe, Romania to be exact. I spent two weeks in a tiny mountain town with one main dirt road, population less than 200 people. We stayed at a place that aid orphan's and domestically abused mothers/women. The program homed about 30 kids and 2 moms. It runs entirely on donations; money, food, clothes, toys, etc. Our mission was to build a school/center for the children. So they wouldn't have to walk 6 miles to school and they have a place to play indoor in the cold weather. 

This experience was like no other. Language barrier, kids becoming attached to us, restricted water and food usage/consumption, living in conditions outside our comfort zone, meeting and bonding with my volunteer peeps. Ultimately, doing something that matters for people I most likely will never see again, the most rewarding experience hands down. 

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I've always mentioned to very few and very close people in my life that I wanted to give back in some way. I wanted to adopt an overseas family, start a charity, be like the TOMS brand. Do something beyond myself. Truly help make a difference in peoples life. I stayed stuck in waiting for the right time. "When I have money I will donate" or "When I have time I will volunteer my time at senior homes or homeless shelters, or at children's hospital, etc." I've realized and truly came to understand that my words and intentions are meaningless without action. Stayed caught up in material things and forgot one of my life long aspirations. To make a difference in peoples lives. Sure I volunteered before, but I shouldn't have stopped there. I needed to keep going. And I will. Thankfully -due to the power of reading- I passed a quote saying "be a do-er, not a don't-er".Which is why I share this with you because I want to be a do-er. And to warn you, there might be a an edition coming to the blog. So stayed tuned. 

Just wanted to share my thoughts and aspirations. 

Hiking to school

Pass on Kindness people!