In this life as Christians, it is crucial to take a keen interest in the lives of those who are poor and suffering from injustice. Indeed, Archbishop Oscar Romero pointed out that we cannot solve the problem completely, but we can build a foundation that a solution can be made on. In my community service, I worked with Elizabeth coalition to house the homeless. Their main focus is to give the homeless, permanent shelter and empower them with skills to be self-sufficient. I learned humbling facts as I delved into the lives of those who are poor and homeless.
As I began my community service, I started to understand the horrifying experiences that most victims have gone through to get them in that position in life. For instance one of the members had lost his job and was not able to fend for his family; raising money for rent became a hustle that he couldn’t make given the unemployment rate and inability to speak English he had nothing to do. Consequently, he lost his apartment, and he had to relocate his family to Elizabeth coalition to house the homeless. It is troubling to hear the pains and heartache undergone by the clients. From face value, it may not seem as real, but while listening and mentoring the person, the tragedy becomes apparent, and the significance of helping out becomes imminent.
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During the time spent there, I gained a lot of insight into the importance of the values inculcated by the sisters of charity and their mission. It is not every day that well-wishers will seek to help the homeless out voluntarily. I was able to use my knowledge to help out the client’s to learn English as this is usually the main barrier to getting employment. Just being there creates an environment full of compassion for one another as you learn of the pains that we all, in one time or another in this life, go through. I was impressed by the integrity and excellence of the staff, as they worked tirelessly to give these people hope and strengthen them for life.
The most important thing that I learned from this service is learning to live with others. It is an undermined quality, but its importance in life decides a lot. In Elizabeth coalition to house the homeless, it was surprising how everyone got along well. It was almost as if everyone complimented each other. Everyone understood that they needed each other to survive and learn what they did not know. I learned to be humble with everyone and listen to everyone’s opinion without demeaning a person. It is a trait that I will take within my life forever and teach it wherever I can. When dealing with other people, it is important to put yourself in their shoes before criticizing or insisting on personal opinions. If you listen closely to someone, you may uncover a wealth of knowledge and wisdom that cannot be attained elsewhere because everyone has a story.
To sum up, it is important to note that it does not need one to be the Messiah to make a change wherever they are. Small acts of compassion, love, and care to other people goes a long way to the advocacy of Christ. To accomplish great works, we need to learn to do small things with love. We need to learn that even a smile or an act of sacrifice or words of encouragement count in advocating Christ’s work ("“Do Small Things with Great Love” | Anchor", 2019).
References
“Do Small Things with Great Love” | Anchor. (2019). Retrieved from https://anchor.tfionline.com/post/do-small-things-great-love/
