“It is difficult to pinpoint exactly what volunteering gives back to the volunteer but it does so by the shedload”

In my own naive way I have always believed life should be about give and take – certainly that ‘middle way’. But I have constantly been brought up short by the sheer number of takers there seem to be around.

Anyway, what I am heading towards is giving a bit extra back to society rather than just taking. In other words, being totally self-centred. I don’t know why I got into voluntary work, but for almost the whole of my adult life, I have opted to do this alongside my ‘regular’ life.

Even when my kids were in single figures, I’d drag them along to a long-stay ward of patients with mental health issues at our local hospital (they’d all be in the community now).

We’d leave home fraught with trivial domestic issues, the kids armed with their respective dolls and cars and within minutes all our cares would have vanished as we interacted with the patients – all united, all on a level, to chat and play with the children’s toys.  I believe it was a tonic for all. Since then, this sort of thing has been a constant in my life (Bob and I met as Samaritans). And it culminated in me setting up my own social enterprise (www.bridle-ways.co.uk) and I am still at it today, 50 or so years later.

It is difficult to pinpoint exactly what volunteering gives back to the volunteer – but it does so by the shedload. Certainly it can be a quietly empathic way to use some of life’s challenges in a positive way. And a great way to meet people too.  And there are just so many, infinitely varied opportunities to get involved with and make the world a better place – you can combine it with your own interests too. It’s a win-win situation.