My time as a Corps Member was slowly coming to an end. We spent the last three weeks of fourth round working at the Action Center, a human-service non-profit which provides food, clothing, household goods and counseling services to homeless and those in need. Our tasks included everything from unloading and sorting food and clothing donations to preparing food orders for the clients, from helping out at the clothing bank to preparing for the school supply drive.
Throughout my year in AmeriCorps, I truly enjoyed environmental projects for their calm, peaceful nature - after a year of working in international transportation and dealing with the stress US Customs and Border Protection brings, it was exactly what I needed.
However, it was the projects where I got to interact with those less fortunate, the projects where, if even for a second, I eased someone's pain, that made the biggest impact on my life. Listening to the heartbreaking story of an individual whose home was destroyed by the tornado; seeing tears and pain in the eyes of a person who lost a loved one in the elementary school that did not have a tornado shelter; handing fresh groceries to someone who has not eaten in days; giving a clean shirt to a person whose only possessions are the clothes on his back; rationing baby food to a mother who would otherwise be unable to feed her child; helping tornado victims locate donation centers which will help them begin to rebuild; presenting a homeless man with his very own bicycle, something he has dreamt about for almost 5 years.
"Ignorance is bliss."
"See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil."
The list of popular idioms and phrases that describe the idea of turning a blind eye to pain, suffering and evil in this world is endless. Of course, it is a lot easier for an individual to go through life in a worry-free bubble of happiness, rainbows and butterflies. However, what that bubble is missing is knowledge, and knowledge of suffering comes with a thick silver lining - a greater appreciation of your own life and all your blessings, and the incredible feeling of accomplishment that comes with the ability to help.
I would not trade my experience for the world.
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| A gift from the Action Center |
However, it was the projects where I got to interact with those less fortunate, the projects where, if even for a second, I eased someone's pain, that made the biggest impact on my life. Listening to the heartbreaking story of an individual whose home was destroyed by the tornado; seeing tears and pain in the eyes of a person who lost a loved one in the elementary school that did not have a tornado shelter; handing fresh groceries to someone who has not eaten in days; giving a clean shirt to a person whose only possessions are the clothes on his back; rationing baby food to a mother who would otherwise be unable to feed her child; helping tornado victims locate donation centers which will help them begin to rebuild; presenting a homeless man with his very own bicycle, something he has dreamt about for almost 5 years.
"Ignorance is bliss."
"See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil."
The list of popular idioms and phrases that describe the idea of turning a blind eye to pain, suffering and evil in this world is endless. Of course, it is a lot easier for an individual to go through life in a worry-free bubble of happiness, rainbows and butterflies. However, what that bubble is missing is knowledge, and knowledge of suffering comes with a thick silver lining - a greater appreciation of your own life and all your blessings, and the incredible feeling of accomplishment that comes with the ability to help.
I would not trade my experience for the world.
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