Away We Go

For the past few years I've watched people around me take off to the farthest destinations in the world. My best friend took off to Japan to teach English, my cousin left to Rwanda to work for the UN, my other friend moved to England permanently, and the list could go on for days. Yet, here I am watching them all fly away as I sit here, in Hamilton Ontario, where I've been all my life, without moving an inch. Sure, I've done those 3 month trips to Trinidad, those minor vacations to Cancun and the Dominican - But where is my purpose? Why haven't I done the thing I want to do most - fly far away, and do something meaningful for people around the world...? The answer to that escapes me. Could it be because school has been my priority since the age of 5? Perhaps. Could it be that I'm so scared to leave what I know best, to venture out to unknown places? Maybe. but the truth is, I am still searching for the answer.

For the past 2 years I've been looking into travelling to India to volunteer in an orphanage I've been connected with for sometime. It has been something I've wanted to do for the past 4 years. In India, a common practice is female infanticide. Another common practice is the orphaning of baby girls. This is because of traditionally held views in most of India, that a girl child is inferior to a boy child, so much so, that people often have abortions based on the sex of the baby, or the baby girls are left to die in the most devastating circumstances. Ever since I learned more about this practice, I have wanted to travel there to work in a girls orphanage and make their lives better however I can.

However, the cost to volunteer, whether in India or another part of the world, is extremely expensive. When I looked into travelling as a volunteer with various programs, the cost to volunteer was over 5000 dollars. Yes that's right, over 5000 dollars to VOLUNTEER. Now, you would think that the bulk of this cost is attributed to food and shelter. But no, I know for a fact that the cost of living in India is very low. The bulk of the cost goes toward placing you in an orphanage as a volunteer, and keeping the program running. Of course, I can understand this, since these are non-profits, they need to make their money somewhere. However I find it hard to swallow that I am unable to volunteer and help people in another country because it costs too much.

But, I can only look around me for continued motivation. I look to my cousin, who always imagined himself working in Africa with refugees, but never thought it would come to pass, until this past summer when he received the acceptance letter, telling him that he was accepted as an intern for the UN, working in a refugee camp in Rwanda. I'm still working my way up to that point, but for now all I can do is keep working to ensure that one day I'll be able to help those people I've been waiting to help. Maybe before that, we'll find a way to volunteer for free? Maybe? I know, its a long shot but who knows.