Giving back to my community

“Giving back to the community.”  What comes to your mind when you hear that phrase?

Well, in my mind comes “us”– everybody as a community gathering together to help the ones in need. Giving back to others means putting our selfishness behind us and seeing what the real world is like.

Nowadays on every street corner we see a person in need. Some may be asking for food, others for money. At times you may say “Oh well, he’s young. He can work for his money.” And yes, maybe he can, but it does not always mean he will have the opportunity to get a job.

Company owners aren’t eager to give a simple job to an unlucky person just because of the way they are dressed or the way he or she smells. It’s difficult to even get a job nowadays for anyone. Imagine how difficult it is for these people.

I remember when I was younger how badly I wanted to help these people. It killed me to see people asking for money. Even if the only thing I had was $1 I’d give it. I remember wanting to take every single one of them to my house and give them shelter.

One day as I, along with my family, distributed food to people who most needed it. When we do this every year all I can say is that it’s an amazing feeling. It’s a lot of joy, happiness, and it’s truly a blessing. It was a feeling of joy that really hit me.

I stopped and watched for a second how a single meal can brighten up a person’s day. A tear, a smile, a simple “thank you,” a “god bless you,” means everything.

When you see people crying because they’ve received a meal at least for that day not knowing when their next meal will be is like a miracle to them.

If you have the opportunity to ever do this, it does not matter if it’s a simple water bottle, or a hamburger, it can surely lighten up someone’s day. And it can sure lighten up yours as well.

This value on “giving back to the community” has been taught to me from my school because I have learned that our community does so much for us, therefore, we can sure give back to it.