So, what are you going to do with your life?

Korrin B.

May 3, 2009 - 7:00 PM

People always love to ask the question, "What are your future plans?" or more bluntly, "What are you going to do with your life?" I hate these questions. They are the worst. This is because I am a self-proclaimed rough outliner. I don't believe in making plans. Plans kill the adventure and the thrill of life's very own twists and turns. I just make a rough outline of things that I'd like to accomplish and a possible route toward them and then just let life take the wheel. I have one million things I'd like to do with my life in the future and I just journey through everyday knowing that I'll accomplish a lot of the great things at some point.

Right now, my interests are education, policy, international relations, and poverty issues. So, maybe I can somehow end up doing something in the future with the title of, let's say, Director of International Poverty Policy for Education? Maybe not. Until then, however, I have decided to just dip my toes into my many interests. I have a rough outline of what I'm interested in and so I am charging forward!

However, all of this preamble is basically just part of my reasoning behind why I started volunteering with Kasey White, the Homeless Liaison for the Eugene School District 4j, at the beginning of this term. After taking her workshop on educating homeless children, I was very intrigued by her work and thought that shadowing her would be a great step in my quest toward the future. I am very interested in helping the homeless and the more I work with children in my after school program, the more I could never see myself working with any other population. Kasey White works with families and students through the school district to make sure that they are being given an equal opportunity for education and to provide them any additional assistance they may need. Her work is very noble and compassionate. I feel honored to get to volunteer with her this term.

Every Friday I go over to her office at River Road Elementary School and volunteer throughout the morning. Lately, I've been working on reorganizing and inventorying their supply closets. Many families come in to Kasey looking for simple items like toothbrushes or socks. I feel great being able to organize the supplies in a way that allows Kasey to be able to find needed items in a more efficient manner and to let her see what she's running low on. It was great to hear that many of the items come from donations. The donations come from community members, doctor's offices, and more. I love to see that kind of giving spirit in the Eugene community.

While I volunteer, I get to hear Kasey hard at work, helping families and standing up for children. It is inspiring and I am happy to have this experience to help point me toward "what I'm going to do with my life" someday.