i've always loved serving. probably because my parents were such good examples of service. if anyone called them, at any time, they would help out. no matter what. it was never a question of convenience or choice. and as i grew older i joined them on service projects, visits to women's shelters, delivering meals and the fun of secret Christmas drop offs. church was a major influence as well since a lot of what we do as Christians is service oriented. in october's general conference, elder quentin l. cook spoke about what a prominent rabbi observed regarding us as members:
...there are two very different reasons people engage in acts of kindness and generosity. Some people visit the sick, assist the poor, and serve their fellowmen because they believe it is the right thing to do and others will reciprocate and do the same for them when they are in need. He explained that while this is good, builds caring communities, and should be considered a noble reason, a higher motive is when we serve our fellowmen because that is what we believe God wants us to do.
He stated that as a result of his visit, he believed the Latter-day Saints undertake welfare and humanitarian efforts and the work of salvation in our temples in order to do what we believe God wants us to do.
but..my whole reason for getting on this subject was to share a story that tells a little bit about me and who i am. a story from my past.
when i was in high school, my family always did the 12 days of Christmas for a few families in the neighborhood. i absolutely loved this. doorbell ditching and leaving treats and the risk of getting caught is just so exciting. well, my brothers and i each took turns doing the drop off. and one night it was my turn.
the family we had chosen for this particular year lived in a house that was up on a hill. the front window was wide open and there were no trees in the yard, only rows of tall pine trees on either side of the house. so the obvious decision i made in this covert operation was to ring the doorbell, bolt through the trees and wait in the shadows.
so, with my plan in mind, i crept up to the door quietly, put down the treats, rang the bell and turned on my heels as fast as i could and ran to my left through the pine trees. unfortunately i didn't make it very far because unbeknownst to me, there was a chain link fence concealed between the trees that i ran smack into. like a cartoon, i bounced off the fence and landed flat on my back. and lay there in a daze till i realized that the family was coming to the door and no matter what, i couldn't be caught. so i rolled over, my head throbbing and crouched down against the fence waiting for them to come out..praying that they wouldn't catch me. and that's when i felt the blood running down my face and realized my nose was bleeding pretty bad.
well, i didn't get caught and i had quite a huge bruise on my forehead for a while but it has always been a fun story and obviously an extreme example of how i truly love the joy that comes from serving and will go to great lengths to do so. i have a testimony of service and know that when i serve others i am serving my father in Heaven. i know that when i'm being a little too narcissistic or feeling a little mopey that serving someone is an instant pick me up. above all i am grateful for my Savior and his example of service to others.
