For the past nine years, my wife and I have volunteered at a summer camp for children in the foster care system. This year, we were up in beautiful Ojai. While serving at the camp with my wife, I learned two important lessons.
First — always wear sunscreen. Just because it’s 30 degrees cooler up there and overcast doesn’t mean the same fiery sun that burns in Santa Clarita isn’t putting down some hefty rays just off the Ventura Highway. Second, and a little more profound — gratitude is a glue that bonds people together.
The children who visit the summer camp every year are always so grateful for the effort we put in to make it a wonderful experience for each of them. These are children between the ages of 7 and 11 who have been let down by the adults who should have loved them the most. We are all volunteers who serve as camp counselors, and I can see the gratitude in the shining eyes of the children and foster parents.
Likewise, I’ve noticed how the volunteers are grateful for each other — it’s the common cause that draws us to serve, primarily for the children and, secondarily, for each other. If gratitude were a food group, we were certainly well-nourished this past Saturday. Relating this concept to the real world of work, I’ve noticed that there appear to be three types of people when we peer through the workplace window.
Let’s take a look inside. The Great Ungrateful: Have you ever worked alongside the Great Ungrateful? Have you ever had to supervise.