so one of the (many) benefits of being single is the fact that i can be pretty selfish. selfish with my time, my money, my travel plans, my sleep patterns. i can do what i want, when i want, with whomever i want, or i can do nothing at all and that’s okay, too. life’s pretty great when the only person you have to think about is well, you. 

but lately, i’ve been feeling as though i’ve been a little too selfish. as if i could stand to do something that isn’t completely self-serving. so i started brainstorming -causes or activities or volunteer opportunities of which i could dedicate a portion of my day or week to helping. i wanted it to be something i would truly enjoy. something i could get excited about participating in and would look forward to participating in week after week. i realize that i just used “i” three times in the last two sentences, somewhat negating my sudden bout of altruism, but hear me out. when searching for a cause of which to devote your efforts, i think it’s important that the entity is something that you are already passionate about. you’re going to be more apt to volunteer with animals if you’re peta’s biggest supporter or dedicate one saturday a month to visiting a food kitchen if you have a heart for the homeless. just sayin’…

so with that said, i took an inventory of what makes me the happiest. and since you can’t really volunteer at trader joe’s (or maybe you can?) without probably being asked to leave or violating their labor laws, i thought harder. let’s see. i love children! i’ve always loved school and well, i’m pretty good at spanish? well it just so happens that there is a volunteer opportunity that encompasses all three things. and turns out, my parents had figured it out months ago.

you see, both of my parents dedicate their tuesday evenings to tutoring elementary-aged ESL students in various subjects through an organization called casa de amistad. hearing all about their adventures week after week makes my heart smile. so after milling over the idea of joining them on one of these tuesday evenings over at solana beach pres for a few weeks, i decided now was as good of time as any to dedicate myself to the cause.

so i’ve filled out the paperwork and gotten fingerprinted and done my best to brush up on my spanish vocabulary. i’ve requested a fourth grader student mostly for the fact that fourth grade was my hands-down favorite year in elementary school. but regardless of who i’m paired up with and what grade they are in school, above all else, i’m just excited to give back.

because if i’ve learned anything in life it’s that sometimes when you give your time in an effort to bless others, you’re the one that comes away being blessed.

so here’s to a new little venture and to hoping my fourth grader thinks i’m cool. if nothing else, we could probably discuss our mutual love for harry styles, right?

image via: pinterest.