Volunteering Community Service

Volunteering and providing services to the community in which I reside is extremely imperative to me, because of this I take as many opportunities as I can to help out. Of all of the hours I have spent volunteering, one service in particular stands out the most. A few years ago I was invited to volunteer at my town's local nursing home, I was skeptical at first, but I proceeded to accept the offer anyway. The date arrived, my group and myself entered the nursing home where we were welcomed with warm, kind smiles from all around. No one expected this, and from that moment on I knew that day would hold a special place in my heart. Both employees and residents seemed beyond gracious and thankful to have us there, and because of this, we all felt
appreciated. The day started out slow, mostly the caregivers explaining what we would be doing and giving us a few simple rules to abide by. We were to simply provide the residents with our time, listen to their stories, and lend a helping hand if needed. Although this “work” wasn’t tiring, tedious, or difficult, it was definitely one of the most meaningful experiences from which I have had the honor of being a part of.
I began to lose track of time as I travelled to and from the resident’s room.
Each had a unique story to tell, some were in shock that they had a visitor after spending almost their entire stay alone, and some were too tired or sick to speak, so they held your hand instead. The entire day was full of emotions, especially for myself. I found myself feeling both happy and sad, for I knew it made these people’s day that we were there, but how could a generation who worked so hard to provide end up alone? I tried to conquer these overwhelming emotions and persevere throughout the day. I encountered several more residents, all of whom were ecstatic to have my company. I listened to what they had to say, and I believe that I grew as a person based on the many life stories I was able to listen to that day. They all had a life lesson, stories of their childhood, crazy tales of their teenage years, and many stories about their family. Since that day I have put to use as many as the lessons these people taught me as possible, and my outlook on life is now much different. I try to visit the nursing home often, however many of those whom I developed a close relationship with in a mere few hours are no longer there, which brings to me a great sadness. I now cherish time with those I love much more, and I can only hope to be as influential and wise and those people were one
day.