Oh, what a week- a week filled with tests and toe tragedies.
This week I had little time to spend venturing in Stillwater, but during the middle of the week I had an epiphany.
Why not give back to the town that is allowing me to spend four years of my life enjoying its small-town quaint-ness?
As I sat in my car on Wednesday night beside the local Braum’s Creamery, indulging myself in a small chocolate Butterfinger mix (with extra Butterfinger), I was relaxing to sweet, Jesus-music on the House FM. Mesmerized by the gorgeous setting autumn sun, I overheard a radio announcement that inspired my weekend.
Celebration Stillwater. A free event sponsored by businesses and churches in the Stillwater area.
Intrigued, I found myself searching the social media outlets for the House FM—Facebook, Twitter—all that fun stuff. It was terribly helpful; I was able to find out all of the information I needed in order to create a weekend adventure.
Now, it was time to find somewhere to offer myself as a servant.
Thursday rolled around and I found myself at FCA where the members were looking for volunteers for Celebration Stillwater—perfect timing.
Before I knew it, I was on my way to Couch Park on a fabulous fall Saturday.
I was greeted with smiles and was put to work immediately.
This is Spoon.
He’s pretty sexy and he knows it.
Spoon was my buddy for the day, and I must say we got pretty close—close enough that the silly horse left a hickey on my hip! It was a loving relationship.
With the early afternoon sun beaming through the trees, I led little ones on their very own adventure—a horseback ride! This was a blast. I had many wonderful conversations with adorable, enthusiastic kids—such as, “Does the horsey eat the fluffy grass??? I’ve eaten grass before, I’ve also eaten dirt!”
After awhile, Spoon got tired of me leading him around in the same circle over and over and over again—so I switched jobs. The next task: loading duty.
He should be the next Gatorade model.
This job was not necessarily the best on the back, but it was worth it. I would get to toss the little kids up onto the horses, get them settled into the saddle and tell them to hold on as tight as they could. Reactions from the kids were priceless.
There were excited smiles, nervous smiles, enthusiast laughs and screams of terror—the screams of terror were, of course, followed by lots of hugs and kind convincing that the “horsey” was really sweet and that they would have a wonderful time horseback riding. This job lasted until the last little blue-eyed girl rode the final trail of the day.
This adventure was time well spent. It was a complete joy.
Here are some adventurer tips and take-aways from the day:
-Volunteer. It's easy to get caught up in our own lives and forget there is a town outside of Oklahoma State University. It's nice to meet the people in the town where you live.
-Venture solo. I ventured into volunteering alone, and I discovered a new confidence outside of my comfort zone. I met a variety of people and had some wonderful conversations.
-Serve with a smile. Enjoy your time helping others! Don't go into the day with a sour attitude. If you are having a fun time, others around you will pick up on your positive vibe. Happiness- it's contagious : )
-Having a hard time finding a place to serve? Just ask! Ask anyone; if you are willing to serve, someone will gratefully accept your offer.
Have you had a positive volunteering experience? Please, share! Comment or tweet (@elkcrossing)-- I would love to hear about your adventures.
