“He who is moved to help others neither by reason nor by compassion, is rightly styled inhuman, for he seems unlike a man.” (Baruch Spinoza)

There is no bigger happiness than that of seeing gratitude in the eyes of a stranger. Especially when you know that you caused this feeling. I had the chance to be a part of that myself.

I should probably start from the beginning. Essentially, I was an ordinary, depressive, lazy and self-conscious teenager with grand life plans. In fact, I wanted something extraordinary and unusual. I felt the need to try new things, but it was never satisfied.

I used to shut myself off from the outside world. It was more comfortable to be by myself, surrounded by books, than in the company of people. Looking back, I realize that I made the right choice, as the environment that I found myself in at that time wasn’t very friendly. If I had to choose again, my choice would be the same.

At that time, I had the fixed idea to become part of an organization with the purpose of helping people. Perhaps this idea, which appeared out of nowhere, has served as an impetus for my further actions. Thanks to one of my friends, I found out about an organization called “Generația cu Inițiativă”, whose principles instilled in me a desire to become part of it, part of something important, so I tried to make this dream of mine come true. From the first meeting, I fell in love with the warm atmosphere which prevailed among the members. I liked feeling of being one of those who actually care about human life, and so I decided that this had to be what I really wanted and what was missing from my life all this time.

To be surrounded by people who want to change the world is truly a great feeling. Being one of them turned out to be amazing and made me realize that I wouldn’t be myself without it. This made me realize that the world isn’t as bad as one might think in our time.

After every meeting I went home with a good mood and with new knowledge. Thanks to the psychologists, I’ve changed. Maybe not dramatically, but certainly for the better. I became more social, more open and confident, and most importantly, I found a joy in helping others. I went from the girl who hid from the world behind her books, to the girl trying to change it for the better. For this opportunity, I am thankful to those who contributed to this organization.

Soon I started thinking about the fact that society lacks this sort of organizations that would contribute in the development of youth by engaging them in certain activities. There are lots of teenagers in our country that don’t know what to do with their life yet but not many interested in this kind of activity. People criticize the youth at every corner but what is the point of this criticism when there are few who actually try to change something. The younger generation should be the future of our society but no one can take their time to show them which is the right path to take.

I really think that the government should sponsor projects that develop the personality of teenagers and instill in them a habit of helping others. A chain of good deeds would go on forever if good deeds were really valued, as goodness is very important in today’s ruined society, and I think a change in society should start with teenagers because our future is in their hands.

In my opinion, the world would really be a better place if people got rid of their indifference towards others.

All the best!

Lera

Lera is a volunteer of “Generatia cu Initiativa” NGO in Moldova. The volunteer coordinator says that Lera really loves her life and finds it is interesting cognitive to talk with her. He also believes her ideas are most of the times very well argumented and thinks that she has a light future, because she follows her dreams.