Volunteer at Hà Nội - SOS Children's Villages Vietnam - 2024
I used to think volunteering was about helping others — until I realized I wasn’t there to save anyone.
At SOS Children’s Villages in Hanoi, I didn’t meet “orphans” or “underprivileged kids.” I met children who laughed too loudly at the smallest jokes, who competed over who could mix porridge the fastest, who clung to my arm not because they were weak, but because they wanted connection.
One boy — quiet at first — kept watching me distribute meals. When I finally asked if he wanted to help, his whole face lit up. He didn’t want to be cared for. He wanted to participate. That moment shifted everything I believed about service.
Kindness isn’t about giving from above. It’s about standing beside.
I learned to stop overthinking my words and simply be present. To stop trying to fix and instead listen. To replace sympathy with respect.
By the end of the day, I wasn’t the volunteer “helping children.”
I was just another kid in the room — laughing, spilling porridge, getting scolded for talking too much.
And that’s when I understood: