This weekend I did something that I really didn't want to do - that is volunteer. Volunteer as a proctor for my daughter's Science Olympics battery buggy event which required basic knowledge of electricity and physics. I know neither, even on the most basic level. I knew I was going to be there all day and working on a subject I have no right to help with much less be the proctor; I felt unenthusiastic and ill prepared.
The second I stepped onto the school campus with my daughter, everything changed when I saw and felt the energy and excitement of a few hundred hungry teenagers ready to prove to the world that they are coming to take over! I was greeted by the other battery buggy volunteers which include 2 other adults (dads of other Science Olympians) and 2 high school students.
What greeted me the next few hours was the sheer joy of learning something new, bonding with the other dads and high school students. I was awed with how mature the high schoolers, who by the way were the only ones who understood how the event worked, took charge of being the core proctors while the "adults" found their rightful places as administrative support for them. Despite the two different age groups there was no ego among us, just focus on helping the Science Olympians get the best experience from the competition.
The key learning for me? You don't always have to get paid to do amazing work among strangers, and volunteering is truly warmth for the soul.
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