Picking Up Trash
Warner Park
Madison, WI 53704
Job Description: I picked up trash in Madison after the Rhythm and Booms fireworks. A group of us took a bus in the morning, and once we arrived we were assigned an area to clean up. For the next four hours we proceeded to pick up all the trash that was lying on the ground, whether it be the remains of the fireworks or pop cans and food wrappers.
Skills: A couple skills that were used during this time were persistency, reliability, and communicating. I used persistency because we were out there for four hours picking up trash. After about the first hour or so, everyone started becoming exhausted from the heat, relentless sun, and plain physical labor. The skill of reliability was displayed when I originally volunteered for the job. A couple of kids backed out when they found out how long it was going to be, but the kids that didn’t back out showed how reliable they were. In conclusion, communication was used because I had to communicate with others to determine who was picking up what area. Not only that, but I had to communicate with others to determine how everyone was getting there and the amount of time that it would last.
Insight: During this community service, I realized that I actually enjoyed performing it. At first, I had my doubts; I thought that four hours of walking around picking up other peoples' trash sounded awful. However, I soon found out that it was quite fun. A couple of my friends participated in it, so I was able to talk with them while I helped clean the environment. Afterwards, we were rewarded with the satisfaction that the environment was no longer filled with garbage, and a lunch provided by the Dakota Athletic Boosters.