HOW KC IMPACTED MY LIFE

HOW KEY CLUB IMPACTED MY LIFE

By Layla Shalabi

Over all the years of doing Key Club, this club has taught me to do things for myself and to know my limits. I joined Key Club in Freshman year because everybody was joining clubs and colleges liked looking at extracurriculars on resumes. In the beginning of the year, I volunteered to earn the hours. I felt like I was volunteering more hours than helping the community. However, my mindset slowly changed towards the end of the year, where I started enjoying volunteering. I started appreciating the mine and the club's work in helping the community. Going into sophomore year, I decided to join Key Club for myself because it felt great to give back. Reflecting on my decision from freshman year, I learned that if I’m making a decision or I’m wanting to do something, I need to do it for myself and not for anyone else. You do what is best for yourself.

Another thing I learned from Key Club is knowing your limit and knowing when to take a break. Going into senior year, it was pretty hectic with getting in all my hours for stoles/cords,

studying for big tests, completing big projects and essays, maintaining good grades, and paying all my dues/fines, etc. Knowing I had a lot of work to complete, I volunteered for a five hour shift that required physical work. During my shift I was not in a good mental state to volunteer, especially doing physical work, because I was stressed from school. While volunteering, I was extremely tired and exhausted and I wanted to quit. From that experience I knew what my limit was and learned to not do so many things I couldn't handle. I learned that taking a break is okay and not doing all the volunteer opportunities is okay too. At the end of the day my mental health comes before anything else.