So I take out my pink-white striped wallet and pay for her hot chocolate, my matcha latte with almond milk and two deeelicious macarons, using a 20$ bill, green and friendly as the country it belongs to (god praise Canada).
Here is what she says.
“Can I see it? That’s the first time I see one.”
“You mean, that’s the first time ever you see a 20$ bill?”
“I’ve seen nana using 5$ and 10$ bills before, but never a 20$ one.”
After that we changed the coins her nana gave her and the 5$ she got from her grandpa to her first own 10$ bill! You should have seen that smile…
I recently started volunteering with an organization in Vancouver where we as volunteers – I love how they call it – coach vulnerable kids for the game of life.
Every week, me and her spend some quality time together. We go iceskating, to the aquarium, or like on that day, play a board game or cards in a cozy cafe.
In moments like this, I realize – how much of a difference I can make just by taking out this adorable girl to places she hasn’t been before and showing her the world.
These few hours we spend together might mean a small thing for us in our busy-minded life, but they mean the world to kids like her…
Originally I started volunteering because I was seeking for compensation to my 9-to-5 office job and – of course – giving something back to the society.
Definetly a win-win for both of us, I thought. I love all the activities we get to do together.
But it’s way more than that. I didn’t expect how much I could learn from a 8-year old girl.
Not only that this smarty-pants corrects my english grammar mistakes, she makes me climb on trees, draw pictures of Helen, the dolphin in the aquarium, spend 2 hours watching and feeding fishes and play hide and seek in a fancy shopping mall.
Kids like her teach us what some of us might have forgotten in our fast-paced world – to stop to think, enjoy the moment and smile.
With this being said I just want to remind us all that there are so many opportunities to give something back to our society just by spending some quality time with another person – no matter the age or background.
Let’s not forget about the power of time and attention, we can make a big difference in somebodys life.
And in the end, we realize how much we earn in return.
Pina
