by Rachel Smith
“Let me just tell you—you’re a senior, right?” My adviser never said my name, presumably because he didn’t know it. I reminded him that I’m a sophomore.
“Oh! Right, right. Well, I gotta tell ya: your GPA is not high enough for grad school. 3.7s get you nowhere these days.”
I nodded complacently.
“You’re going to need some experience, but it looks like…”
He scanned my resume while shaking his head.
“I really don’t think anyone will hire you. From now on, look only for jobs that you’ll be able to put on here.”
He wagged the resume back and forth like a drunken cow.
“You might check out the, um…they take volunteers. The International Book Project. Just email the guy; I think they have a website. Shoot them an email. And if you need help with that, my secretary can point you in the right direction.”
I assured him that I could handle sending an email, thanked him, and left the office.
A week later, I showed up at the International Book Project’s door for the first time. It was a day just chilly enough to be uncomfortable. I had missed the turn the first time and, the second time, had to do a 6-point park. I was exhausted from doing homework late the night before, and I had never doubted myself or the old man who sat behind his desk and made fun of me for taking “an easy semester” more than I did in that moment.
I don’t remember quite what else happened that day, or the next week, or the next. But I do know when I started staying three and four hours instead of my typical two, coming in twice a week, and before long, seeing volunteer time as sacredly as I saw class time (which, unlike many college students, is pretty sacred).
I became a reliable enough contributor that I have been given the task of documenting and forwarding thank-you letters, and I have to say, this is the most rewarding job in the business. I started volunteering religiously because every time I come to the International Book Project, I get to see the pictures of the children who received our books. I get to read their letters thanking us for giving them such a precious gift. I get to feel the gratitude of people who are beating the system of intellectual repression, which for so many years has disadvantaged their societies, and, best of all, I get to pass on that gratitude to the people who really deserve it.
A lot of people call me a hippie or an idealist because I want people everywhere to have equal opportunity. Volunteering at the International Book Project is my way of sacrificing a couple of hours of privilege to make sure that the generous donors who keep the International Book Project up and running feel exactly as I do every time I open an envelope here: proud, touched, and loved. That’s what keeps our donors invested, and that’s why I love volunteering here. I get to make a difference, in my own hippie way. As Gandhi said, I get to be the change I want to see in the world.
I wouldn’t spend the amount of time here that I do if I didn’t believe in the International Book Project and the work we do, and I doubt you would have taken the time to read this post if you didn’t, as well. So for that, I thank you. The volunteer experience at the International Book Project, for me, has been one of the greatest blessings of my collegiate experience.
It’s important to keep in mind, though, that without every part of the puzzle, the wheels would stop turning. It takes a concerted effort from every one of us—volunteers, employees, donors, partners and bookstore faithful—to make this clock tick. I am so honored and thankful to be able to play my part.
My old adviser is retiring this year, and I have moved on to someone new. But I can never forget the impact that man (who probably to this day still can’t tell you my name) had on me, and though I may be a purveyor of gratitude at the International Book Project, I could never thank him enough.