Today is the day I launch my youth groups: an environmental awareness group and a girls group.
I am sitting in an empty classroom. It is 6:15 PM. The girls group was supposed to start at 5:30. Fail.
The environment group earlier was a little better. I had 4 people show up (but 3 of them were kids I already had class with and they always come in a package together… only 1 student was new to me. However, we’ve planned our first activity for Monday – finding a path to the beach closest to my town, a little expedition of sorts. That’ll help me promote for my club.)
I haven’t quite experienced the “no one shows up for my meetings” phenomenon about which every Volunteer laments – until now. I’m the real thing now. I’m a real Volunteer, and I’m experiencing my first real failure. It’s okay. I expected this would happen to me someday. I’m not invincible. And optimistically, I wanted it. I want to know what it’s like to fail because I’ve never truly experienced it before.
That’s what this experience is all about – trying new things. Trying new, SCARY things. I’ve had my share of “just jump in and get it over with” moments since coming to this country. I made the club meeting announcements. I put myself out there. I was so nervous, but I jumped into the frigid water. The hardest part is over. Now I just have to swim and keep things going.
So now I’m strategizing my next plan of attack. I’m going to do a lot of word-of-mouth, print some more invitations, and make a radio announcement. Guilt trip kids into coming – maybe.
So what else is on my plate? I’ve been away from the blog for a while, mostly because I’ve been preoccupied with a lot of things. At the end of March, I worked on the Volunteer magazine for Peace Corps DR. I’m going to be the editor-in-chief of the next issue! Also, I’m working on getting a proposal together for a telenovela-style video series based on a nation-wide sex ed initiative. I will be soliciting funds for this project very soon. Moreover, I’m on the planning committee for an awesome girls summer camp called GLOW (Girls Leading Our World), in which we will have various charlas and activities to promote female empowerment. And finally, I’m trying to launch these youth groups as well as a conversational English class for advanced students. In the meantime, at the center, I’ve been tech support, helping to update the systems and solving basic computer issues.
I feel busy, but I feel I’m not doing enough. Yet, when I think of taking on another task, my head starts to spin. So I hope to work on these few things and make them really awesome. I really have some great ideas for the youth, and I hope to focus the rest of my service on them.
If the secrete to Success and failure, your one step closer.
ReplyDeleteFood is the #1 draw for most people in my experience. Before they come to you, you will have to go to them. My Grandfather use to visit his entire congregation ever day of the week to see how they are doing on a one on one bases and to make sure they will show up on Sunday. He only only did this with the new members, but with the ones that have never missed a day in all the years he preached. Maybe consider planning a cookout? Get all the Dona cooks in the neighborhood and fill them in our our outreach program, ask them to sponsor your cause by making one dish each, until you have 12 dishes on the menu. The word will spread. Finally, in the words of David Lynch : If you stay true to the idea, it will lead you to success.