My role in the Baruch community specifically right now is to familiarize myself with the college lifestyle and to do the best that I can in my classes. Part of this is to have a proper work ethic and to hold up the standard of being serious about schoolwork that is in my Learning Community. I feel that after I will finish this breaking-in period, I will be ready to take on a more real role of service in Baruch. The role of service which I see is promoting a consciousness of loving kindness among the students which would be above background, race or religion. This doesn’t mean going around and hugging every person I see. Rather, this would be doing proper and real community service specifically in the college itself. This could go from being part of future blood drives, or participating in VITA, or many other available activities.
There is a reason why I think the community service should be done within the vicinity of the Baruch community. For me to explain this, I have to tell a story which I’ve been hearing for the past few years, but it never gets old.
There was a man who decided that he wanted to completely change the world and make it a better place. So he took all the things that he would need for this great journey, grabbed his donkey, and off he went. After a few years, he came back to his family in his home country, saying that he was unsuccessful. So he decided to try to change his country. This didn’t work either, so he tried to better his city, then his just his street, then just his own family, and then realized that he had to start just from himself.
Life is a constant journey of self-improvement, especially when one understands that there is always place for him to better himself. When one is in such a mindset, his family (being the people that he would usually find himself the most surrounded by) will be affected by his change as well, and they would change too. I have now stepped into a greater circle, which is the Baruch Community, and I feel that I can be part of everyone’s journey of building a better tomorrow.
By participating in community service, I will humble my ego, and improve myself. I will see that I am not the only one in this world who has needs, and that there are those who are less fortunate than me and that need my help. This will (hopefully) cause me to act differently and more selflessly in my everyday activities, thus possibly affecting others as well. With others doing community service as well, I will be affected by them. It all comes to be a win-win situation.