Today begins the weekend and also my time to give back to my community. The purpose of today is to slow down, appreciate what I have in my life and the accomplishments I have made. Also, my task today is to return some of the happiness I have experienced to my surrounding community.
Keeping these thoughts in mind, my new tasks are to:
- Make a list of all the ways you contribute to your community now. Do you watch your neighbor's kids for free? When's the last time you held open a door for a stranger? Do you write checks to charity or volunteer on occasion? How can you step up what you're already doing and do more? Where are you on this pyramid?
- Make a list with three columns: 1) all the charities you'd love to help out, 2) why you feel you can't, and 3) how you can address and remove those barriers. Do your barriers— as legitimate as they may seem to you— outweigh the importance of participating? Remember: you needn't become an activist or even a leader to be active in your community! Simply participating in an ongoing project is giving back and living your values.
- Practice what you preach. Go. Do. Help. Change. In other words, sign up today to volunteer for an environmental cause.
- How do you feel? As you give back throughout the day, ask yourself what benefits arise from volunteering. Did you meet your neighbors? Find common ground with strangers? Evaluate the hardest obstacles you've faced today and share possible solutions with the No Impact Experiment community.
- Write down five things for which you are grateful.
(Source: No Impact Experiment How To Manual)
Here is my list of ways I currently contribute to my community:
- tithe to my church
- volunteer with Salkehatchie Summer Service
- volunteer with HomeWorks of America, Inc.
I recognize that this list is short. Since coming to Wofford, I had to cut back on volunteering in order to keep up with school. I look forward to increasing my volunteer and contribution time soon! I do not think that there are ways in which I can increase what I am already doing due to my limited income and that both the organizations that I listed above only run during certain dates. In relation to the pyramid, I currently fall in the first and second layer (Annually writing a check and volunteering monthly). I understand this pyramid is constructed to show how each individual can increase their contribution to the community, but I feel that with my given circumstances I cannot do any more. I appreciate this breakdown because now I have a goal to work towards after I finish my studies at Wofford in the next few weeks.
The next step of today's guidelines are to fill in the following table:
| All charities I'd love to help out | Why I feel that I cannot help out | How I can address and remove these barriers |
| Hatcher Gardens & Woodland Preserve | Time | Lighten my schedule |
| Ashland UMC, my church | Distance and time | Move back to Columbia; lighten my schedule |
| Heifer Project | Money | Manage my budget better |
| ESOL classes | Time | Lighten my schedule |
After looking at my filled-in chart, I do not think that my answer is what this experiment wants when it asks “Do your barriers outweigh the importance of participating?” For me, yes, my barriers do outweigh participating in my community. While in college, I am placing school as my top priority. I have learned that in order to perform my best, I have little time to no time to do things other than study. What time I do not study I set aside for personal time. I look forward to this reality changing in the next month when I graduate.
The one item in this chart that I do feel I can change is providing additional funds to charities. By organizing my spending habits a little better, I know I can set aside money to help my community.
As the challenge of today is to give back to your community, I did just that! This weekend I came home for Easter. (Don't worry, I carpooled with my roommate and went the speed limit to conserve gas). As my church is one of the communities that I am closest with, I chose to volunteer with the Saturday Easter Egg Hunt. I recognize that helping at an Easter Egg Hunt may not be the most environmentally themed option, but I felt that this is where I was most needed today. In fact, upon my arrival, I was given a job before entering the building. My jtask was to lead the 3 year old group and their parents on their search for eggs. I had a great time! It was rewarding to guide the young egg-hunters and facilitate the event. I think my favorite part was watching the parents and grandparents encourage their children to pick up eggs and take their photographs.
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| My roommate, myself, and church friend, Robert, at the Easter Egg Hunt |
While an Easter Egg Hunt is not at first glance an environmental cause, I do think that it supports many values that the environmental movement encourages, the main one being community. During this event, people from the church and surrounding neighborhood came together for one special day. By sharing the commonalty of their children hunting Easter Eggs, I feel that every person present gained a sense of common identity and a positive outlook on the surrounding area.
For me, the hardest obstacle today was reconciling with myself that volunteering with my church was the right choice for No Impact Week. I was afraid that at the end of the day I would be disappointed I did not follow the project's guidelines. But, as I said above, I think my choice was the right one for today because my presence and help were needed. Also, after some contemplation, I realized that my work today was environmental in that it supports a community in a sustainable capacity. The church both needs the help of those around it and also gives to those around it. What a wonderful feedback loop!
To close, I'll share another five things for which I am grateful:
- Easter Egg Hunts
- the optimism of children
- my church family
- being home today
- my family understanding and supporting me for No Impact Week
Until tomorrow,
Krista
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