Why I Volunteer

America may have become familiar with the ancient Zoroastrian teaching “Good Thoughts. Good Words. Good Deeds.” from the Bohemian Rapsody’s cinematic fanfare. It is a simple concept that has been at the heart of the progenitor of monotheistic religions.

This is the core of why I volunteer and why volunteering has been a cornerstone of my children’s upbringing.

I am the ultimate cafeteria catholic/agnostic who finds great wisdom from many places. The cafeteria is always the wrong dining establishment, in my universe religious beliefs are like highly curated tastings. There are sublime morsels of truth, braised in a delicate culture, spiced with musical tradition and eclectic fabric, and garnished with philosophy. Sometimes these are paired with flights of rich terroir — mythology and geography.

Volunteering connects you with the people who are trying to change the wheel, whose rough shoulder has been worn smooth but the smile of hope shines so brightly. The kind of doer who sees a need, often a great one, and searches for solutions. The idealist and optimist who can be found counting the homeless for the census that defines the collation of help. Their work is a form of prayer into the world that wills it to be better than it is. These are my people — all the drive of a hundred Gorden Gekos but aimed at cultivating promise. When you get to dine at this table, no…