With less than a month until I leave for India, it is still hard for me to believe sometimes that I am really doing this. I am not a person who makes snap decisions - it took me three days of pondering before I decided on a name for my cat. But when I was deciding what to do this summer, and I came upon Rising Star Outreach, it felt right. It really felt like something that I should do. Then, since the first couple of volunteer sessions were full, I figured I'd have until at least mid-July to get ready. But, wonder of wonders, my volunteer session begins on June 20. So, here I am, trying to get ready in significantly less time than a lot of people who are heading out on the same trip.
One of the hardest things right now is fundraising. I've been getting a lot of "you're paying your own way to do this?!?" lately, and the truth is I'm doing way more than that. Rising Star relies on its volunteers to do a lot of the necessary fundraising for its programs, and they definitely cost money (mobile medical clinics, boarding schools serving hundreds of students, microfinance loans, leprosy colony support projects). I hate asking for money, but I know that I can't come up with it all on my own. I'm trying to reach $3,000 if I can. So I'm swallowing my pride, biting the bullet, and asking. I'm surrounded by wonderful, generous people, so I believe that it can be done. Actually, the whole thing is reminding me a little bit of something I remember President Boyd K. Packer saying when he was speaking in a Cody, Wyoming Stake Conference for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints some years ago: "In this church, we ask everyone to do everything, and to pay for everything." I remembered it because I thought about the blessings that come with this sacrifice. I get the idea that Rising Star (which was started by an LDS woman) follows similar ideas - through real sacrifice, it creates blessings for all involved, from the people served, to volunteers, to donors. So, I'm asking.
My visa application is in. I have my prescription for anti-malaria pills. And I've started gathering my things to take with me. Onward to India!
