The Volunteer Calendar

Whenever someone cancelled a shift at the animal shelter, the coordinator called Alex. He lived nearby, understood the routines and almost always agreed. Over time, his name appeared in more spaces on the calendar than anyone else's.

Alex enjoyed the work. He was less pleased when colleagues at his paid job began asking why he looked exhausted. He had started checking the shelter's messages during lunch, expecting another request.

One Saturday, he was due to visit his sister. The coordinator phoned because two volunteers were ill. Alex said yes automatically, then looked at the train ticket on his desk.

He called back and said he could not come after all. The silence on the other end felt longer than it probably was. The coordinator said she would find another solution.

At the following meeting, Alex expected criticism. Instead, another volunteer admitted that he too found it hard to refuse. They discovered that emergency requests had become the normal way of filling gaps.

The group agreed on a smaller, realistic timetable and a separate list of people available for occasional extra shifts. Alex chose two regular mornings.

The shelter still needed help, and the new arrangement was not perfect. But Alex stopped treating every empty space on the calendar as his personal responsibility. He enjoyed his two mornings more than he had enjoyed being available all the time.