-吉姆·H，81岁, 退休人员. 辛辛那提，俄亥俄州. 

我居住在俄亥俄州辛辛那提的一个退休社区。我的身体和精神状态都还不错，这允许我和这里的居民和工作人员建立了友谊。每天我见到他们都会微笑以对。我真诚地向人们问好，问他们过得怎么样，并诚恳地告诉他们我过得如何。我喜欢居住在这里。这里的居民待人和善，并且有着丰富和有趣的性格，这些都使我感到十分惊喜。工作人员和管理层也都很积极，每天为我们提供同样周到的服务。这就是志愿服务在日常生活当中对我的意义。尽管我常常失败，但却尝试着这样做。

此外，我的志愿服务还以参与治理我们的国家为表现形式。每天我都会收看关于总统和国会的报道。我给总统、州参议员和众议员、以及其他重要官员打电话和写邮件，告诉他们我对于如何治理国家和参与外交事务的想法和建议。这些行动的关键是试着去做的精神。当官员们的观点和我不一致时，我试着不把他们当作敌人，而是倾听他们的想法，理解对他们来说什么是重要的。我认为没有人是永远正确或者永远错误的。我希望能得出最好的解决问题的方法，无论这些方法来自哪里。这就是我们如何努力地在家庭和组织中生活，并学习如何生活和治理我们的国家的方式。这对我们所有人来说都是一生的课题。

What I Learned from Volunteering at Age 81

-Jim H., 81, Retiree, Cincinnati, Ohio.

I’m living in a retirement community in Cincinnati, Ohio. My physical and mental health are good, allowing me to form friendships with residents and staff. I smile as I meet folks each day. I ask people how they are doing and mean it, and tell them honestly how I am doing. I love living here, and my fellowresidents amaze me with how kind they are to one another, and with how their personalities are so rich and interesting. The staff and management are also very positiveand they serve us in the same kind way every day. This is the everyday stuff that volunteering means to me. Despite my regular failures, this is how I try to be.

Next, my volunteering takes the form of participating in the governance of our country. I watch the President and Congress daily. I phone and email the President, my Congressman and Senators, and other key officials with my thoughts and suggestionson how to govern our country and take part in foreign affairs. Key to these actions is the spirit with which I try to do them. When officials’ opinionsdiffer with my own, I try not to see them as enemies, but try to listen to them so I can understand what’s important to them. I believe nobody is always right oralways wrong. I hope to bring together the best ideas to solve problems, wherever they come from. That’s how we strive to live in our families and organizations, and that’s how we can learn to live while governing our country. It’s a life-long agenda for us all.

要想了解更多此类故事，请访问: https://china.usembassy-china.org.cn/zh/education-culture-zh/xin-jiao-liu-magazine-zh/every-day-americans-zh/

For more stories like this, visit: https://china.usembassy-china.org.cn/education-culture/xin-jiao-liu-magazine/every-day-americans/