The Joy of Volunteering
People say that giving is equal to receiving, but for many of us, it seems to be better. We are intensely social creatures; our increasingly complex societies are evidence of this. We need to interact with each other to be healthy, to feel human. Even for those of us that are introverted, engagement is still necessary. Volunteering is a subtle, but beautiful social lubricant that helps to build and strengthen communities. Although much of popular fiction displayed in mass media can portray humanity as extremely narcissistic to the point of violence, there is still something of inherent goodness, or at least the potential for it, within us. One of the most explicit demonstrations of this potential, of the best vehicles for it, is volunteering.
Not only is volunteering a profound statement in the hope that still lies within humankind, but it is also one of the best gifts that you can give yourself. Yes, sadly, many faults lie in the world. Volunteering empowers us to take action, even small measures, to correct them. When we volunteer our time and skills to a cause, whether it is a large-scale endeavor or minor, we give ourselves a little gift of “social sovereignty”. We go from being disempowered subjugates of an often-chaotic world, to being emancipated agents capable of manifesting something better. It doesn’t matter how small that improvement in the world is; it is still something of worth.
This agency is no trivial thing. We need to feel that our lives have value. We need to know that the actions we take, contribute more than just to our own immediate personal gratification. Volunteering allows us, by our efforts, to feel connected to the tapestry of humanity that we are all interwoven together. The joy of volunteering is that in giving with no intention of return, we gain a significant part of our better nature. We learn something through selfless actions that elevate us above the mere existence. We improve the world in little ways, and by doing so, we develop ourselves in great ones.
For more on how you can take action to improve your life and the world
