So, I’m an AmeriCorps VISTA volunteer for a non-profit organization,which helps people who are experiencing homelessness in Hawai’i. I have worked for non-profits in the past, but this is different. I feel like I can have an actual visceral effect on this organization. I can help this organization to move into the future. I can lay down a framework for funding, public relations, etc…that can help them to help the people who need it the most. It’s an empowering feeling, and humbling. Sometimes it’s a little intimidating. The main common denominator among the different VISTA placements are: they aren’t so much direct practice than capacity building and the orgs are about somehow alleviating poverty. Heavy stuff.
I attended the VISTA training last week on the mainland as they say-in LA. For most, the PSO (Pre-Service Orientation) introduced them to their VISTA year. Due to when I was hired, location and when they have the trainings scheduled, that wasn’t the case for me. Regardless it was an excellent experience. One of my coworkers said on Friday,”You look so much more relaxed.” It was true. I had been so extremely stressed out before, but now I felt some wooza, zen type of ish.
I think it stemmed from the really great people at the training. Their confidence and enthusiasm spoke volumes. I needed the reminder that not everyone in our midst are apathetic or oblivious. Some people are striving to make the world a better place. (Excuse me while I put on my rose-colored glasses. I have to brush some dust off of them. I haven’t seen these bad boys since 97. I thought I lost them in a move.)
In addition to meeting an interesting and diverse group of people, there was some good information cultivated there. Whether it was hearing about each other’s experiences, learning about the resources they knew about or learning from the facilitators, the training was informative, and inspiring. Admittedly, I was not feeling so inspired or rosy on Monday when we were working like mad (wo)men to put together a 100 page grant proposal and get it shipped off to be postmarked on the right day. Then I was catching up on everything that I had put aside in trying to work on that behemoth of a soul-sucking monster. Sometimes you have those days, right? The triumph comes from waking up, scraping yesterday off the bottom of your chucks and walking tall into the promise of today. *cue rainbows, sunbeams and angelic choir*
So, I guess the point of my blog is to extend a thanks to the peoples that I met. I was feeling extremely overwhelmed when I got there, but I was buoyed by your joie de vivre…even when it was smothered in snarkiness with a side of an eye-roll. Good luck in your year!
Aloha ya’ll!
