NHC SF Americorps: Somewhere to Go
Every few weeks, our NHC-SF AmeriCorps members will blog about their 2019-2020 year of service. NHC members will gain invaluable experience while supporting the health care safety net by serving at host sites such as community health centers and Department of Public Health sites to provide health education and care to vulnerable and underserved SF residents.
I take care not to crinkle the torn notebook page as I slide it out of the envelope. Unfolding the paper, I squint to read the small script crammed together on the half sheet. “Hi my name is Timothy!” the first line reads- it looks as if it has been written by a child. A fourth grader? I guess as I scan the rest of the letter that can’t be right. He is requesting books which will help him learn more about the world- sociology, astronomy, history, he isn’t picky. The words get messier and closer together at the end of sentences, as if excitement pushed the author to pen faster. My vision unfocuses as I stare at the envelope on the table in front of me with the red CORRECTIONAL FACILITY stamped in the left corner. Who is Timothy? What happened to him? How old is he? Where did all this exuberant curiosity come from? In my contemplation I pick the letter up again and this time I notice the single-line postscript that I had skipped on my first look “reading is all I have to pass the time here, every book helps.” I stop pondering and get up from my seat - I have work to do.
As a former bookseller, self-proclaimed bibliophile, and Goodreads fanatic, the value and joy of books have never been a mystery to me. In elementary school, I volunteered to sort through returns in the school library during recess. In high school, I received special permission to take a Victorian Literature elective during my lunch hour. While applying to college, I wrote about how literature breeds empathy for my common application, and, after graduating college, I took a second job at a book store in addition to my full time job.
My love of books comes from my belief in the powers of words. Words, crafted into narratives and stories have the power to abate loneliness, catalyze creative thinking, open one’s mind, inspire change, and help readers feel seen and understood. Words can empower.
While looking for more ways to serve my community, it was a special pleasure to stumble up on the Prison Literature Project (PLP) with its tag line: books open doors. The PLP is an all-volunteer run nonprofit which sends hundreds of free books to prisoners around the country each month (some disturbing stats about mass incarceration can be found here). As a volunteer, I get to spend my Sundays reading letters written by individuals who are currently incarcerated, choosing books for them, and sending those books back with a handwritten letter explaining my choices.
Finding service which both feeds and is fed by my passion for literature has been important to my service journey. Every week, I am motivated to put all my attention and care into finding books which will enrich and embolden their readers. I never have to ask myself the importance of the work because I have absolute faith in its value.
This post was written by NHC SF member Shivani Bahl. Shivani serves at San Francisco Department of Public Health’s Primary Care Population Health Team as a Chronic Pain Program Coordinator and Health Coach.