Volunteering, food for the soul

Part of being healthy is being happy and feeling fulfilled. There is no place I feel more consistently whole or happy that Tijuana. Below is my blog post from our trip's blog read on to start to understand why, more reflections later on giving back and traveling...

" ...For me, this year's trip has been different from all of my other trips, having lived here for so long last year, returning is a little strange. I missed Mexico so much while I was gone, and now being back I am slowly realizing how much this place, and this organization has changed me and helped me grow as a person. While I was down here last year I saw small changes, but mostly I was wrapped up in what was going on while I was here, and the work we were doing. When I returned home change was slow and I'm not sure if I ever fully took the time to reflect on my time here, but now having been back for about a week and a half now (I came down a week earlier than the group), I have really had time to examine everything that has changed in Tijuana, and in me in the last year, and over the past nine years.

  It's easy to come down here for a week each year, and to have an amazing time, meet kind and caring people. It's hard to return home and continue living out the lessons learned while here. We get sucked up in the fast pace of our lives and work and forget this wonderful place. Being back here the last two weeks has been completely refreshing. People talk about how selfless volunteering is, and how amazing it is for people to come here, to somewhere perceived as very dangerous and give their time. It's hard for me to see this trip that way, I almost feel selfish coming here, because of how much I get out of this trip, and how much I love it here. I have never been somewhere that I felt more welcomed and loved. The people we meet open their homes and hearts to us daily. They would give us the shirt off their back if we asked. Even though for many of us there is a language barrier we still find a way to communicate, we find a way to work side by side with people from the communities to accomplish something.

  I'm often asked why I come here when we're only building one part of one house. There are so many problems in Mexico, we can't possibly solve them all so why should we try and help"...Continue reading on the trip's blog