“I don’t want to go!” I cried.
“You will whether you like it or not”

My dad has this way of convincing me to go places and do things. This particular expenditure was to the WHO. Sadly this is not the band, but the Winter Hospitality Overflow. The event aids struggling families who lack a home during the winter months, and it gives them a warm place to sleep and socialize. I doubted that I would enjoy myself or be able to welcome them as a volunteer but I had my orders.

The simple task assigned to me upon arrival, was to socialize with the children. The amount, however, surprised me. Many families had babies and young children so I had quite the task ahead of me. My initial shyness and fear melted away after about 10 minutes and then I started to really connect with the children, especially one boy named Johnny.

Johnny and me played for almost two hours doing puzzles and playing foosball. A real connection was made between us because he reminded me of my younger brother.Then, the time came for me to go home and say my farewells. I gave Johnny a big hug then was about to leave when he asked,

“Where are you going?”
I quickly replied “ I have to go.”

Walking away as fast as possible to avoid further questions, I told my dad I was ready to go. He gave me the keys so I left for the car. Then, I lost it. Tears welled up and I began to cry. I felt guilty about having a home and nice things while here my new friend Johnny was left without one. His resemblance of my brother didn’t help with the emotions. Since then, I have gone back to help every year because of the profound gratefulness for what have and how I can share that with others.