Once More, With Emotion

Forum over the past two weeks has gone swimmingly. I'm learning a lot about the ethics of volunteerism, possibly more than either of the speakers expected or even intended. I'm choosing to condense the past two weeks into one blog post in order to show you what I mean. So there's two gentlemen. These guys are some money-making dudes with very different 'tudes. We've got John Lane, a Periodontist, one of the least glamorous professions ever, but he makes good money doing it. He didn't talk much about his work, just about the time that he has spend working with The Healing Place, an organization for grieving children and families. Then, we've got Jacki Hendrix (I'm fairly certain that's not indeed how his name is spelled, but I choose this way because it's fun), who's the Chair of the Florence Chamber of Commerce, which  operates completely on a volunteer basis. His real job is something involving tent rentals, he didn't get into the specifics. He said he makes some serious cha-chang.

These two speakers stood in stark contrast to one another, and I may not have even picked up on the differences had they not spoken back-to-back. In order to illustrate these differences, I initially spent way too much time on a flow chart comparing and contrasting the two. Then, I realized this was lame and looked more like the handiwork of a newborn ape. So I will stick to what college has taught me all too well: the good ol' fashioned paragraph.


Neither Lane nor Hendrix regarded volunteerism as a "check-the-box" sort of deal. They would agree that it's a means to a much greater end. Both would agree that the faces impacted by the organization make the work worthwhile. The difference? Lane's speech came from the heart. It was heavy and emotional and vulnerable. You see, Cerebral Palsy claimed the life of his son, and he shared with some difficulty about the grief that he and his family had experienced, and how that drove them to get involved with The Healing Place. Hendrix talked about the advantages of volunteerism, but he spoke of people in the names-to-add-to-your-Rolodex sense. Hendrix has a pleasant personality, and is likely very good at making friends. As a result, he has a good position on the social ladder and every reason to take pride in that. But I felt that his heart was somewhere far off.


I'll apply this to me. Recently, I've been reminded in multiple ways how much I like people. While I cherish, even revere my alone time, my friends are an essential part of who I am. I've been to the soup kitchen thrice now--just enough time to see that there's regulars (and a good many irregulars, if we're being honest). The first two times I was washing dishes, the somebody's-gotta-do-it job. Pruny fingers aside, this should have been a prime job for an introvert like myself. However, it was the time I got to pass out plates of food with Kristen that I felt was time well spent. Whether the people there said anything or not, I like to think that I had the chance to change the course of someone's day with a plate of warm food.


So, that's the honest-to-god truth. I like people. Don't alphabetize them or reduce them to numbers. They belong in your life, not your Rolodex.