If you were to think about who has given you a helping hand during tough times, you’d probably mention the usual suspects. A parent, your partner, or a friend. If you thought harder, particularly about strangers that provided you a helping hand, some trivial examples would come to your mind first. The person that held the door for you yesterday, the driver that let you go first this morning even though they had the right of way, the store employee who went out of their way to solve your problem. What may not be evident at first glance is that we all can identify unique life experiences where a complete stranger gave you a hand when you were in dire situations. They just came out of nowhere, expected no compensation whatsoever, were glad to help you and equally fast disappeared from your life. You most likely still need to learn their name. Those people’s memories stick with you for life, even after decades. Complete strangers that gifted you their generosity and, in the process, impacted you and made at least some small change in your life forever.
I can think of several situations where I was fed by strangers. Sometimes strangers with limited means who were equally hungry chose to share their food even though it wasn’t enough for them. People I barely knew were willing to help me pay off student loans with no financial interest on their part. Others gave me some of their clothes so I could stay warm when we crossed parhs in the remote wilderness where the risk of hypothermia was real. We never met again and their gift stayed with me for many years. I can remember the policeman that drove me around for a few hours, ensuring I got to my destination, bought some food, found a place to spend the night, and even said goodbye with a water bottle when I had finally secured food and was safe at a place to spend the night. Memories like that make your eyes brighten up.
We generally hold the opinion that our achievements primarily result from our efforts. All despite the obstacles that life has constantly put in front of us. Yes, parents may have helped with education or setting an example, but we earned our achievements. In reality, we get there, more often than not, with repeated support provided by the generosity of complete strangers.
Volunteering makes you that complete stranger that changes another person’s life. You may or may not get to know or even meet the people that benefit from your support. Allow yourself to be someone who has a lasting positive impact on others for life without expecting anything in exchange. You will impact their lives while gifting them that treasured memory of a complete stranger that provided them with a helping hand. Your time commitment can be small. It just needs to be reliable to be effective.
Through volunteering, you may discover that you start trying to change other people’s lives and may end up changing yours.
