Quote Originally Posted by airshifter View Post
....Some of these people I have met are now employed in a health care system that is attempting new ways to reach out to those in need, and these men and women are very inspiring. Many of the veterans also come back to help and volunteer as they learn to cope, and the stories of some of those people brings me to tears.... literally. It is a group of people I have enormous respect for......
Charity and volunteering are strange concepts in this country. Nobody will help you for free even if the helping hand costs nothing. Well, there are exceptions but only a few. My mother always helped old ladies in the neighbourhood with shopping or simply staying with them for a cofee and never thought to ask something for that. If she went to buy a bread it wasn't a big deal to buy one more for a neighbour who couldn't leave the house. Matter of fact in our small aromanian community we developed a solidarity that always looked strange to romanians. It was a cultural shock for me when i started to work and had to cope with romanian society. The mentality of "I don't care what I have to do as long as money comes" or " I won't tell you how to do this cos I don't offer counselling for free" was strange to me.
Now I'm afraid that after so many years of trying to integrate myself in their community I started to become one of them. I have become a heart of stone that can't be touched by normal feelings. I use to blame it on all the hypocrisy and lies that surround me. But what if I'm wrong?