We are the pieces of Life

serv⋅ice

1   [sur-vis] Show IPA noun, adjective, verb, -iced, -ic⋅ing.

–noun

1.	an act of helpful activity; help; aid: to do someone a service.

That is officially what it means, but what does it really mean? For many classes and organizations community service is required. Many people see it as a drag, and you know what at first I did as well. When I walked into my Psychology of Personality class last semester, I almost wanted to drop because she required "20 hours of community service total." I thought to myself, heck no how am I gonna manage to do all that with all the work that I had? I don't have 20 hours of time to just give away for free this semester. Obviously I already had it all wrong from the beginning, and I didn't know how I was going to make it out of the semester alive.

So I was asked to be a College Advisor for some Latino students at Harrisonburg High School. I thought, this is a great time to do my service project for my class. It was one of the best experiences that I've ever had. I was able to build a relationship with these students and serve as a role model and motivator for students that needed it the most. It completely changed my mind about service and even changed my career path and life goals. I love my students so much and at my very core I understand the importance of this type of service.

Recently I was watching Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist and this quote really touched me:

Norah: There's this part of Judaism that I like. Tikun Olam. It said that the world is broken into pieces and everyone has to find them and put them back together.

Nick: Maybe we don't have to find it. Maybe we are the pieces.

We often forget that we are the pieces of life, and the only way we can put them back together is by taking care of each other - reach your hand out past your family and friends! Only good can come from service. So when you wake up every morning, say out loud to yourself, "how can I help someone today?"

Peace & Love,

Candace