Posted by Tamar on October 19, 2005, at 17:33:11
In reply to I think I should shelve the idea, posted by orchid on October 17, 2005, at 19:27:18
> I don't know anything about kids.
>
> And I haven't done any voluntary work before.
>
> What if I mess up a child with my inexperience and my mental health issues?
>
> And what difference am I going to make anyway? There are plenty of more skilled people available.It seems to me that you have a lot to give. You’re a very caring person and you clearly have good problem-solving skills (which is always useful when you’re dealing with special needs kids).
It doesn’t matter that you don’t know much at the moment… if you decide to volunteer somewhere you will be able to pick up the necessary skills.
I think it’s very hard to start your own organization, but there are many that already exist and are doing good work. If you work in that kind of environment for a while you might find you want to specialize in a particular area (working with kids with cerebral palsy, perhaps, or orphans, or kids with mental disabilities… whatever you find you have an aptitude for). And maybe once you have some experience you can think about setting up a new organization, if that’s what you want to do.
If this is an idea that really appeals to you, I don’t think you should be discouraged from trying it. It’s hard work, but it can be extremely rewarding. (My sister-in-law does something similar, so I’ve seen how rewarding she finds it.) I think you’d do a great job. It takes a lot of love but the great thing about love is that it costs nothing and there’s no limit to it…
Tamar
poster:Tamar
thread:566855
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20051018/msgs/568945.html