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A 'Small Things' guest Editorial
Volunteering
Why do I do this thing?
by Sharon A. Singer
Somewhere along the way I was made to feel that I was out of my mind to want to volunteer for making life a little better for others when I don't have my own life all together. I've never been able to achieve that getting it together, and now I've reached that time of life when it occurs to me that I should challenge this concept.
Phase #1 of my plan involved looking for a word or phrase that described why I feel drawn to volunteer.
All the while I was searching for this word my mind kept quietly, but persistently, prodding me to consider the word 'philanthropy'. That couldn't be the word, I thought scornfully. Much later I realized it really was, and all along I had been giving in to a preconceived idea about what that word actually means.
I had always thought of philanthropy as a word that applied only to people that had so much money that they had to find creative ways to give it away. Since I'm not in that catagory of people you can see why I tended to push this word out of mind.
What Is Philanthropy?
When I finally gave in and looked up the word, much to my surprise I found that 'philanthropy' is "a love of mankind shown by practical kindness and helpful-ness to humanity." (Emphasis mine.)
Wow! I can assure you that I'll have a different attitude from now on when I'm out there searching for ways to make a difference in this world.
Sharon A. Singer
DIFFERENCE
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