Cherry Reflects on Friendship and Mentorship, and Mentoring Again in 2017
I had the opportunity to interview a few SAYes mentors from previous years before I embarked on my mentoring experience. When I asked them if they’ll be mentoring again this year, their answers were always something along the lines of, Gosh, maybe someday, but probably not right away . At the time, I didn’t really understand why they said that, but now I do, and admittedly have found myself feeling the same way at times.
When I say this volunteer role is a difficult one, it’s not because the young people are unruly. For me, it’s because I’ve grown attached to my mentee. We’ve formed a relationship and developed a weekly routine that I’ll be sad to let go of at the end of the year. The idea of meeting a new mentee in 2017 and starting this whole process again seems like a tremendous effort on my part.
Then, I realised I must get over myself and my tender little heart. SAYes is very clear from the beginning of the year that this mentorship is not a friendship. Okay, it’s hard to prevent that from happening if the shoe fits. But, if a teacher can say goodbye to an entire class of students she’s grown close to over the year, take a deep breath and welcome a new one, I’m pretty sure we can handle doing that with one young person. Let’s just pat ourselves on the back and sign up again, because the reason we’re doing this is simply: to improve independence through informed choices and to improve well‑being through healthy practices.
So, a little DIY to get going on before 2017. Drive to the hardware store and buy some sheet metal, build a little armour to put around your heart, and then buck up and get ready for the new year and a new mentorship opportunity.
Thanks for reading, Cherry