It amazes me that we’ve lived through this pandemic and I’ve forgotten the ill effects of it already. What I reflect on is the benefits of re-examining how I spend my time. I’ve been completely retired for 13 years and spend a lot of time volunteering for various non-profit organizations. Unfortunately, I was overcommited and resenting those involvements once I said yes to them. Often, this involved being in charge of some event requiring lots of meetings and effort.
Once the pandemic hit its stride, for example, our church went online and I stopped helping out there, except for one committee that I was asked to join. It didn’t take long for me to realize that it was going to be a long-term commitment and that no one wanted to take the lead. I tried to chair it for 3 or 4 sessions and realized that it was going to involve some prickly personalities and difficult decisions.
It caused me to examine my motivations for always being the one who steps in to help.
I’ve been a compulsive volunteer for years and usually stick with some thankless jobs for too long, so I decided to take time to examine that with the help of a therapist on zoom. I learned the almost unbelievable truth that I could quit a committee and I did that, with very little explanation, other than that I didn’t have the energy or motivation to continue. In the past, I would have felt guilty about letting down the team, and all that. I felt better almost at once.
I even quit a raptor rescue effort I had been involved in for almost 20 years. The director had been limiting the involvement of us older volunteers during the pandemic for fear of exposing us to Covid. One Saturday night when I was called to transport a bird to the center, I realized that it would involve interrupting my dinner preparation and an hour and a half of driving in traffic, so I declined and another person came to the rescue. Since I felt like I was being eased out of the volunteer group anyway, I decided it was time to give up that role. I don’t regret that either, as I have many fond memories of being an unofficial bird ambulance driver. All in all, the many years I spent helping out yielded a deep appreciation knowledge of local wildlife, especially owls and hawks.
I did get Covid, but I very mild case due to many vaccinations and have had no long term effects.
I am much more thoughtful these days and take time to decide what activities I want to engage in. About a year ago, I started helping out preparing meals for the homeless at a local church and I recruited a friend to help me make salads for sixty people a few times a month. It doesn’t take us a lot of time and it feels very rewarding.
While I’ve been dismayed by the political divisions in our country seems to be manifested in mask wearing and the effectiveness of vaccinations, this has been a period of thoughtful reflection on my role in the world at this time in my life. I got to understand myself a little better and am more careful about my role in the organizations that I commit my time to.
I’m grateful that I’ve survived this pandemic with no lasting physical or psychological damage. So many others did not.
— Oxnard15
Once the pandemic hit its stride, for example, our church went online and I stopped helping out there, except for one committee that I was asked to join. It didn’t take long for me to realize that it was going to be a long-term commitment and that no one wanted to take the lead. I tried to chair it for 3 or 4 sessions and realized that it was going to involve some prickly personalities and difficult decisions.
It caused me to examine my motivations for always being the one who steps in to help.
I’ve been a compulsive volunteer for years and usually stick with some thankless jobs for too long, so I decided to take time to examine that with the help of a therapist on zoom. I learned the almost unbelievable truth that I could quit a committee and I did that, with very little explanation, other than that I didn’t have the energy or motivation to continue. In the past, I would have felt guilty about letting down the team, and all that. I felt better almost at once.
I even quit a raptor rescue effort I had been involved in for almost 20 years. The director had been limiting the involvement of us older volunteers during the pandemic for fear of exposing us to Covid. One Saturday night when I was called to transport a bird to the center, I realized that it would involve interrupting my dinner preparation and an hour and a half of driving in traffic, so I declined and another person came to the rescue. Since I felt like I was being eased out of the volunteer group anyway, I decided it was time to give up that role. I don’t regret that either, as I have many fond memories of being an unofficial bird ambulance driver. All in all, the many years I spent helping out yielded a deep appreciation knowledge of local wildlife, especially owls and hawks.
I did get Covid, but I very mild case due to many vaccinations and have had no long term effects.
I am much more thoughtful these days and take time to decide what activities I want to engage in. About a year ago, I started helping out preparing meals for the homeless at a local church and I recruited a friend to help me make salads for sixty people a few times a month. It doesn’t take us a lot of time and it feels very rewarding.
While I’ve been dismayed by the political divisions in our country seems to be manifested in mask wearing and the effectiveness of vaccinations, this has been a period of thoughtful reflection on my role in the world at this time in my life. I got to understand myself a little better and am more careful about my role in the organizations that I commit my time to.
I’m grateful that I’ve survived this pandemic with no lasting physical or psychological damage. So many others did not.
— Oxnard15
Extricating oneself from obligations...it's difficult. You did it with as much grace as possible, it seems! Giving yourself freedom. This might have happened without the pandemic, but it interweaves in these happenings, as you have shown. (Macoff)
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