The Love of the Outdoors

On the morning of Thursday April 26, I was at the Arboretum one last time to complete my hours for volunteering, from 9-10:30am. The weather this time was not gracious, with the sun blazing brightly. I once again worked as a trail worker with a volunteer group but had a different task assigned this time. The previous Saturday a heavy storm hit, with high winds that severely damaged the trails. Many trees fell and branches and leaves blocked the trails so people could not pass through. Our task was to clear this trail by raking the leaves and cutting up fallen branches to make it easier to move. This task once again required a great deal of physical labor. I began to realize that it is sometimes very easy to forget the beauty of nature, and volunteering here really helped rekindle the excitement of being outdoors. I had a blast working here. This experience was definitely a positive one, and I plan in the future to volunteer here at least once every month. 

Benefits of Volunteering

          On Wednesday April 25, I was back at the Arboretum after my classes had ended in order to continue my volunteering hours, from 3pm to 5pm.  In the time I went, there were no trail worker jobs at that time and all of the children’s programs had just ended. Therefore, I ended up cleaning all of the windows in the building, using Windex and paper towels. Surprisingly, I did not consider this task a chore at all and was grateful for a job that ended up helping me relax after a long day of taking exams and studying. If only this dedication to clean could be translated the same to my bedroom. One of the reasons I was extremely motivated was that the directors at the Arboretum were truly thankful for my help and their continuous appreciation further motivated me to volunteer more and give back to the community.

        As I was cleaning, I thought about the reasons why nonprofit organizations started in the first place and I looked at volunteering from a different perspective. The purpose of nonprofit organizations is to educate the community about the natural environment and to take care of and preserve the native plants and animals that live there. Volunteering is about being able to make a difference in the community and experience things that you've never done before. Volunteering has helped me build leadership skills and made me more confident in communicating with others. 

         After cleaning and scrubbing off any visible fingerprints from the windows, I walked away feeling more accomplished than when I walked in at the beginning. I learned a little bit about myself, characteristics such as persistence and dedication; in a way, I am now able to appreciate the little things in life that are sometimes easily looked over when getting caught up in daily activities. 

Next: Houston Arboretum

         Because last week was the final week to volunteer at Japhet Creek, I had to find other opportunities for volunteering. A friend had recommended me to volunteer at the Houston Arboretum. ((BACKGROUND INFO ABOUT ARBORETUM)) I filled out the volunteer application and background check and got a response in less than 24 hours. I was very amazed at how efficient and easy this process was. On Friday April 20, I had an orientation appointment scheduled to meet with the volunteer director at the Arboretum. She was enthusiastic and very appreciative to have me on board. The meeting was approximately 30 minutes long, giving me an explanation of the different possibilities of volunteer work, an overview of the different trails there are, and how to log in and out to record volunteering hours. I was already becoming very excited and could not wait to begin. The next day, April 21, was my first time to start volunteering at the Arboretum and I could not have asked for a better place to volunteer at. Yes, the day started early at 8am sharp, but the weather was perfect, 68 degrees, and a couple of other friends joined me in this volunteering extravaganza.

         First, I had to prepare by going with the trail workers volunteering group and heading to the shed to put on gloves and getting the necessary supplies needed, a shovel and a wheelbarrow. The first and only task was to go to the pile of mulch, use the shovel to put the mulch in the wheelbarrow, take this wheelbarrow to a trail located approximately 6minutes by walking from the mulch pile, and emptying and spreading it out evenly on the trail. This process is done monthly to protect and keep the soil moisturized. Multiple water breaks were needed, as this task proved to be very strenuous and required a great deal of physical strength. Three hours later, pouring sweat, and a couple of sores muscles, I once again had that feeling of satisfaction of giving back to the environment. I also surprised myself at my endurance level and being able to last that long shoveling mulch without giving up from exhaustion. A main aspect that I took from this experience was appreciating the opportunity to volunteer and give back to the environment and community.

         Reflecting back, I was in awe with the scenery, a very peaceful environment. I was mostly amazed at how the arboretum’s main focus is to preserve the environment. Not even running or biking is allowed on the trails simply to prevent the wear and tear of the soil. Going back and forth from the trail and mulch pile, hearing the sound of chirping birds and other animals was relaxing. I also saw a dead fox, and the head of the volunteer group simply moved it off the trail and left it to decompose.

I felt that I was able to contribute back to the community through this volunteering. I was able to learn ways to interact with others such as with the volunteer leaders of the group and directors of the Arboretum, skills such as team work, cooperation, and communication. 

From Service Learning to the Outdoors

           After multiple weeks of patiently waiting to hear a response from Burrus Elementary to schedule official times for volunteering, I finally had to opt out of volunteering with CIS due to miscommunication between the CIS manager and Burrus Elementary School.  As a result, I had to quickly find other volunteering opportunities. On Saturday April 14, I volunteered at Japhet Creek, located in Buffalo Bayou, from 8am till noon. After volunteering here, I quickly realized that I had wanted to work in the outdoors for the remainder of my volunteering hours.  The Buffalo Bayou Partnership is a nonprofit organization, and the organization’s ultimate goal is to renovate Buffalo Bayou by protecting and maintaining its environment. People that volunteer continuously work in order to beautify the area in ways such as picking up trash and gardening.

        Even though it was an early Saturday morning for volunteering, the results at the end of a couple hours of hard work were truly satisfying. Before beginning work, we were shown pictures of poison ivy as a precaution to be able to identify and stay away from it if it’s spotted. Poison ivy is a harmful plant and can cause severe skin rashes if skin makes contact with it.

        Therefore the first task was to pick out Ragweeds. We were shown examples in order to spot it in the area we were told to work at. These plants are usually long (ranging from 1 to 3 feet), the stems are branched and coarse when touched, and the leaves are ragged shaped. It was a very enjoyable time being able to be volunteering with my other classmates. Teamwork was an essential element in being able to work together to identify the ragweeds and pick them out. Overtime, it became easier to spot amongst the other plants. Because ragweeds are shallow rooted, it was not difficult to pull them out of the ground.

        The second task was to cut tree branches into smaller pieces then take these pieces and place them on both sides of trail, providing a more direct and clear path for people walking on the trail to follow. This task proved to be far more difficult and challenging than the first and required much more team effort and hard work. The boys would use the saw to cut up the branches and then the girls would take the branches and place them along the trail.

       In the end, it was very satisfying to see the results of hard work paying off after only a couple of hours of work. It felt good to know that I was not only helping to maintain the environment but also making it a better place for people to enjoy. 

Due to weather conditions, I was unable to go volunteer at the elementary school on Friday but am planning to go every Tuesday and Friday to volunteer.

The registration process is finally completed, and I can finally contact my CIS project manager at the school to set up my schedule. I hope very soon to begin going weekly to Burrus Elementary School to start volunteering and tutoring the students.

This past week I went to Burrus Elementary School to complete the registration process. I did not get a chance to meet any of the students but I am really looking forward to begin volunteering and tutoring these students. Seeing the school I would be volunteering at made me more motivated and excited for this Service Learning Project.