A Compassionate Listener
This week we welcome a guest blogger from Calgary. Sabiha lives in Calgary, just near the Bow River where she enjoys listening to a good audiobook while taking in the teal colours of the water.
I got into volunteering during my first year of college, initially on the advice of a mentor. As an inexperienced student, I was told that volunteering would enhance my resume. At the time, I didn’t have any goals beyond that. The mentor recommended The Yellow Door, as a potential organization in Montreal, which supports elderly members of the community.
When I started, I didn’t realize how deeply the experience would impact my life, and not just my resume. I became a friendly visitor to a retired nurse who lived alone. Although her son visited regularly, she was looking for company on other days to go for coffee or walks. Until then, most of my social circle had consisted of people my own age. Growing up, my grandparents either lived abroad or had passed away, so I had little experience interacting closely with the older generation.
Spending time with the retired nurse opened my eyes to the wisdom, resilience, and insight that comes with age. I especially enjoyed listening to her stories about being a working mother and wife, experiences that would become relevant to me only a few years later. Real life, human connections like these are invaluable. Listening to my new companion’s challenges, successes, and life lessons helped me reflect on my own values and make more informed decisions. Interacting with my senior companion has had a calming effect. The older generation is less distracted and less in a rush. They’ve mastered the art of living and listening.
More than anything, volunteering made me pause and reflect on what truly matters in life. I started out, thinking I was simply giving back to the community, but I gained so much more. After every visit, the sense of meaning and appreciation I felt far outweighed the small amount of time I was giving.
Since moving to Calgary, I’ve continued volunteering with seniors through Bethany Senior Care and the Calgary Seniors Resource Society. These ongoing experiences have only further enriched my life. The elderly in our community are often an underserved population. Many of them have contributed to society in their younger years and supporting them now is a way of bringing life full circle.
Volunteering with seniors started as a resume booster, but it has become a lifelong journey of growth and gratitude of the human experience.