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Who knew something so seemingly plain could make you feel an entire spectrum of positive emotions?
Over the summer break, Anjeli and Asia suddenly sent us links for volunteer work with an organization called Project Pearls and since we had lots of time on our hands and lots of energy too (despite all the nights out), we all decided to sign up. Project Pearls cooks food good for roughly a hundred and fifty people and brings it to children from a small school in Tondo. The kids rely on this food to fill their stomachs every morning - much like a soup kitchen.
The nature of the volunteer work is painfully simple; go to the location which is a small clubhouse in the middle of Tondo, put on a pair of gloves and place the food - usually soaps and bread- in the containers that the kids bring. After that, time is dedicated to playing and story-telling with the children.
What we love most about what we do are the smiles and laughter. We love seeing how the effects of a few small actions like high-fivinf or carrying a kid on your back or even just making a face can really go a long way in brightening their day. And the happiness is contagious. The walk going to the clubhouse is always filled with tired excitement but the walk going back to the car is always, always filled with happy energy - full hearts and ear-to-ear smiles, and a bunch of children holding your hand or running beside you.
Although the volunteer work is designed as a soup kitchen, it's really the playtime with the kids, and the bonding time we get as a barkada that keeps us coming back. Seeing how this volunteer work always has us feeling lighter and happier is an excellent bonus as well. Kids taking turns playing with you and dancing and showing you their talents and just seeing all of them running around and enjoying themselves before another school day is quite simply, blissful. Not many things in this world can make people feel that way.