Hello there, Hiver friends!
Today is the first day of the week, a new week full of new opportunities. I am Thanh Tuan and I'm delighted to return and share the places I have visited and did. 🤗
I have spent a long time learning from monks, Buddhists, and friends doing meaningful work. Over the last few days of the week, gifts were given to people who live in remote areas and face difficult material and spiritual circumstances. This is not my first time participating in these activities. I have done so several times before. And I did it again yesterday, which made me very happy.
It took us one day to travel by car and set up volunteer housing. Because the majority of the volunteers are my age or younger, communication is simple. While we were interacting with the locals, the aunts and uncles were gathering firewood and preparing the first batches of rice for lunch. After interacting with everyone, I returned to assist the uncles and aunts in lighting the fire to cook food. Before 2015, when I was only ten years old, my family still lived on a wood stove, so I frequently went outside to watch my mother cook rice on a wood stove. Until recently, almost every home used gas or electric stove rather than a wood stove because it is much more convenient and takes less time to cook food. However, I believe that rice cooked on a wood stove is far more fragrant.
We took a short nap after lunch because sitting in the car for so long had made everyone tired and sleepy. We begin sleeping between 1:00 and 2:30 p.m. Following that, we went to each household with young children and needy families to share and encourage them to take the first step on their new journey. My volunteers and I wrapped gifts and distributed them to each citizen. The gifts are not overly valuable or expensive, but they bring joy to the people who receive them. When I received gifts, I received genuine thanks and smiles from them.
The children here are adorable and courteous. They frequently share the same subjects in one notebook because they do not have enough money to buy notebooks. Because studying is difficult, we have given the children gifts such as books, notebooks, and pens as luggage for their studies.
I had a memorable and enjoyable weekend. These are most likely my first encounters. I'm happy to see other people happy. I believe it is unnecessary to wait until we are wealthy and have a lot of money before volunteering and sharing with those in need. Everything you do becomes meaningful and life becomes more interesting if you have a heart. Thank you everyone for taking the time to read my comments in today's post. I am happy to share it with everyone. Wishing everyone a good start to the week.
Thank you.
