Finding Joy in Serving Others
Last week I fixed dinner for an elderly couple. I didn’t know them. Someone else had asked me to do it as an act of service. I didn’t have a reason not to, so I did. I have some anxiety about cooking for people I don’t know. I want to cook something they’ll like. So I called to ask them what they might like to eat and they said, “We’ll eat anything. We’re not picky.”
Great, I thought. They’ll probably eat anything but what I cook. After a day of worry and anxiety about what I should make them, I cooked a simple meal and took it to there house. When I arrived with two containers of steaming food they were so happy to see me and grateful for the food. When I left their place, I felt very good. It really wasn’t trouble at all to cook some extra food for them. I didn’t have a reason to worry.
Doing what’s best for someone else is usually what’s best for you. There are opportunities to help others all around us. I don’t really have to go out and look for them. The opportunities present themselves to me everyday. How hard is it to hold the door open for someone or let them merge into traffic in front of you or say hello to someone? These are all small acts of service that most of us perform everyday.
Consider how much better the world would be if people just shared with one another or really treated others like they wanted to be treated. When I help others I know that I’m doing my part to help make the world a better place. That knowledge fills me with happiness.
Photo by foto_morgana
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