The Right Thing to Do

My aunt is a model example of one who is at the same time benevolent and extremely frugal. She is able to save every penny that she can, so that in turn she can donate to a multitude of causes important to her. She is an amazing person and one who we can admire and bow down to, knowing that we are not so giving. But I'm trying. 

At my school, we have various fundraisers that go toward United Way. I donated a good amount to them to help their causes. I just donated money to the UN's World Food Programme, which is essentially the main source of food for millions of people around the world. I donated when the tsunami hit in 2004. I designated the gifts toward the tsunami relief. This time, we didn't specify which cause it would go to, because the need around the world is great. B chipped in too, because he could see that it's important to me. But still, I know I can do more. I know that there is great need in my own area. Fortunately, the United Way does help local charities, but what more can we do?

I considered actually joining the Junior League of Norfolk. I want to volunteer for local causes. The only problem is that during the school year I am so inundated with teaching that it's hard to fit that in too. Plus, I do feel like I am doing something for the greater good when I teach. I got into teaching mostly because I wanted to make a difference in other people's lives. Part of me regrets that I am not teaching in a high-needs school, because in my noble mind, I can do more for them, at least theoretically. But having met many teachers who have worked in high needs schools, I don't know how much one teacher can really do without the support of the child's community and home. Home is where it all starts. So what I think I need to do is to help with the community and home front. I cannot change perceptions of others, but I can do something to help uplift those who want to help themselves. 

In the meantime, I do feel that I am making a difference, even with the kids who have so much more than many. In my classroom I am trying to teach the kids that they can make a difference in their own community. I am trying to teach them to look beyond their own neighborhoods and be aware of what's going on in the world around them. I don't know if that message has been conveyed well enough by me, but I hope so. I really have no way of knowing, but I hope that I'm making a difference in that respect. I really think that if we can motivate kids to care, then our future as a global society will be that much better. And yet, I look at some of the teenagers today and I wonder how much hope there really is. And then I realize that of course, I'm sure that's how I was seen when I was young too. I actually think that we are raising kids to be more compassionate than our own generation. I hope that in my efforts they will try to make the world a better place. 

My only hesitation about joining the Junior League is of what others may think about me. There is a perception that it's just a bunch of women who do fundraising and have lunches. I've known women in the league, and I know it's more than that. Whatever it is that I do, I want to keep trying to make a difference. I know our little $50 to the World Food Programme is peanuts compared to what we can really do, but it's a start, right?