Rebuilding my Perspective

Here at Cabrini, every year members of the junior class go to the Rebuild Center of New Orleans for a few hours to serve those in need. On October 25, I was able to experience something that I never thought would change my life. Growing up in New Orleans, I am very used to passing up homeless people begging for change everyday on the streets. As this is a daily occurrence, I normally just turn my head the other direction and patiently wait for my light to turn green, avoiding eye contact as much as possible. After witnessing a young man begging for money on Earhart and then proceeding to hop into his brand new black Camaro whilst smoking a cigarette, I started to give up on the idea of helping the homeless. Now, I obviously wanted to do what I could to help someone in need, but living in a world filled with lies and hatred, you can usually never tell when someone is real. My visit to Rebuild was a completely different experience, though. Going into Rebuild, I knew that this opportunity was going to impact my opinions, and I was eager to see what I could learn from this experience.

When I think of my experience at Rebuild, I cannot even think about considering the service we did to be work. I always heard my middle school teachers say that service is not true service if it is just work. Honestly, I never really believed that statement. This time, I could feel my service helping others, though. This was not work; this was a mission, something I just knew that I had to do. At Rebuild, I got to give out crosses and talk with people in need. Whether these people were living on the streets or couch hopping, they all needed our help. As I was conversing with people, I could sense that they truly appreciated what I was doing. Just by giving them a cross or exchanging a quick smile, these people blessed me and hoped for me to have a wonderful day. The most beautiful thing is just noticing someone truly benefiting from the little bit of service that you are providing. The small things in life we take for granted are some of the most incredible things for these people.

One person who stood out to me was this 26 year old woman living on the streets. At first glance, I could tell this woman was struggling. I began talking to her, and she immediately started giving me advice for my future. The most incredible aspect of this woman was that she always looked on the brighter side of her situation. She never complained, and she never talked badly about her experiences. She always said that one day things would get better and that her hardships would all be worth it in the end. In my mind, this was absolutely incredible. How could someone living behind a church with no job and no money be so optimistic about her future? After talking with her for a few minutes, a little kitten popped out of her purse. She explained that even though she probably could not provide for a kitten, she could not pass the kitten up because she wanted someone to keep her company. At this point, I could feel the tears fill in my eyes. At the root of all she had been going through, she needed a friend, someone to keep her company and understand her. This completely impacted my perspective. I knew I had to do something soon. In the next few days, I hope to return to her, give her a few items she might need, and most importantly, talk with her.

During this experience, I learned the importance of compassion. I learned that we should not just be doing service just to get the required hours. I was not used to hands on experiences with actual people in need, but now that I am, I have a new point of view on the subject and will be volunteering in the future. From this opportunity, I gained the knowledge to put myself in the shoes of others. As we sit and complain about not having the newest generation of the iPhone or not having the highest average in our classes, some people are wondering if they will be able to eat tomorrow. Compassion is what matters in this situation. That is one thing that a paid job will never be able to teach me.

This has probably been one of my favorite acts of service that I have ever had to do here at Cabrini. I actually felt like I was doing good because I was able to see and interact with those in need. Going to Rebuild has taught me to give to those in need, and I would most definitely go back to Rebuild to do service work again.