Beyond yourself

HAVE you ever had that feeling of wanting to make a difference in the world but don’t know where to begin?

What if I tell you you can always make a difference in the world in your little way? It doesn’t have to be grand, or you don’t have to shout it to the world. Synonymous with the fashion world’s quiet luxury where everything is in subtlety.

As a banker, we focus on giving good customer service and providing solutions to our clients’ needs. We live by this corporate mantra. Possibly one of the drivers that makes us want to give back to the community where we live, especially communities facing barriers. Serving these communities would somehow make our lives come full circle.

One hand reaching out to another and the next will create a ripple effect and will lead to farther heights. That’s what joining hands can do. We may not have the capacity, but we have the network, and we can make that network work for the greater good.

Volunteerism is one aspect of being involved in a cause greater than ourselves. Volunteers offer their time and energy to make things happen and to make a difference.

You see them responding to an emergency like fires, serving in a soup kitchen, cleaning and painting classrooms, cleaning shorelines, planting trees and mangroves, or running to raise funds for the underprivileged. Some volunteers teach in a school for special children, hospitals, homes for the aged, or jails.

These are just a few of the things that a volunteer can do. It’s not an easy task, but the warmth it provides to those whom you helped and the smiles that you see are more than enough to keep you going.

In a recently concluded charity activity, I saw families involved in it. You see competitive runners running a shorter distance because they are with their families. That is one example of being a role model to our children and starting them young. Children imitate what they see and echo what they hear.

Doing something for the better good is a clear example of being part of a cause greater than ourselves. It’s being selfless. It’s when we think beyond what benefits us. It’s when you start caring for the less fortunate.

When setbacks attack and you think that your deed was small or that the time you have given is too short, remember these two quotes,

“No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted,” and “Volunteers do not necessarily have the time; they just have the heart.”

Quotes taken from Aesop’s The Lion and the Mouse and from Elizabeth Andrew, an American author.