You'll Never Know If You Don't Try

I awoke this morning is disarray. Instead of my blanket being wrapped around me, I had some strange gauzy stuff all over. Ahhh! Spider web. No wait! Mosquito net. That was interesting. (Each of our beds is covered with a mosquito net, which helps keep away mosquitoes that escape into our rooms.)

As with all my adventures, I enjoy doing them because there is always a life lesson to be learned as a result of the experience. Some of these lessons are life-changing while others may be small confirmations. I would consider my very special experience with Global Volunteers to be both. It has confirmed for me that life is not a destination, but a journey, which is what makes life and the fact that we, in the US, have the luxury of choices so amazing!

My biggest realization/confirmation is that regardless of what I am doing in life, I must be passionate about that which I am doing, whether it be work-related or personal. This allows me to get through the ups and downs with ease and to be more productive, creative, and generous.

Additionally, by working with this team here, I have realized how important it is to set expectations with people and be honest with yourself about what it is you need. Our team is constantly setting expectations and defining (or in some cases re-defining) roles and responsibilities. Thus, if issues come up, we go straight to our agreements and negotiate from there. As a result, no one feels a sense of not being heard or not valued. Surprisingly, we do this so little in life, whether it be in relationships or a job.

Know that I fully realize these "lessons" are not ones which we have not heard or in some cases, experienced ourselves. What is interesting for me, at least, is that I am realizing the value of these lessons as a result of experience rathr than someone telling me "it is so."

The part I am fearful of is, "Can I implement these lessons in daily life once I leave India?" Yes, we live in a country where we have the luxury of choices, but we must face that within every culture and sub-culture there are unspoken rules and expectations - many of which we may disagree with but we still obey. Is this because change is too hard? Or maybe we don't know how to do it.

On a lighter note, after many of us have tried to figure out how in the world to get the 2-5 year olds at Assisi to sit still, Linda and I tried something new yesterday and it worked! We cut out shapes from construction paper and gave them to the kids. We also provided single sheets of construction paper, colored pencils, and a glue stick. They were engaged!!!! We did it! (In the past, we tried flashcards, games, and singing, but they each lasted about 2 minutes.)

So it is true...you'll never know if you don't try.