Personal Narrative: The Burlington Ribfest

Barbecue sauce mixed with morning dew smeared across the endless rows of white tables was the first sight that greeted the volunteers of the Burlington Ribfest. It was the first image that my best friend and I could not help, but commit to memory. Eager as we both were to get volunteer hours, I signed us up for multiple shifts as part of the ECO recycling team, totaling up to 12 hours. Little did I know, this adventure would change me in a way only direct experience could.
Our shifts began at 7 a.m. in the morning. We were to wipe down the tables and pick up the garbage people left behind as part of the set-up to prepare for the massive flood of people the Ribfest receives. Bones underneath tables, careless napkins thrown aside and unfinished food uncovered themselves with every step we took deeper down the rows of white tables. The feeling of shame seeped into me for I was the one who insisted on my best friend volunteering with me. She would now have to spend 12 hours collecting waste. I paused to survey the multiple sorting station positioned around the tables, one we would find ourselves at, and felt disgusted. All an individual would have to do is simply walk a couple metres and leave their garbage on the table. What prompted the decision to toss the garbage on the ground instead? …show more content…
The setup of the station looked dreary with a flimsy tent surrounded by soiled white tables. Underneath stood three large garbage cans, a blue cart and a green bin. The inner area revealed two overflowing black bags of garbage that were to be sorted. I had just torn open the first bag and started to pick apart the debris when people began trickling in. The sideway glances and stares began immediately and filled me with overwhelming embarrassment. What did we look like, creating such a scene, visible to everyone? We had no choice but to get use to stares as the number of people