“The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.” ~ Mahatma Gandhi

Being a Social Work major rightfully implies that I want to help people. Doing any type of service is my passion and joy. This past year, I was able to immerse myself in two particularly impactful service experiences. The first was running a middle-school youth group and the second was leading a service trip working with L’Arche communities. My youth group consists of fifth through eighth graders, and every week we spend two hours hanging out, playing games, and talking about faith. L’Arche is an international network of homes where people with and without intellectual disabilities live and share in daily life together. These two experiences demanded 100 percent of me, and often left me feeling drained. However, I would not give them up for anything. Why? It is because there I found the type of service that was exactly what I am passionate about, service of presence.

Service of presence is different than the type of service we usually think of, such as building a house. Service of presence is serving others by being fully present to them, completely open and vulnerable. By doing this you are giving others the space to be open in return. Open to you serving them, to ask for what they need, but mostly open to the love you are showing them. Sometimes this service is active, but usually it involves simply sitting with another person and directing all of your energy on being there with them. Actively listening and truly caring about what they are saying. I can honestly say that this the hardest form of service I have ever done. Surrendering yourself to the joy and pain of another person is not an easy task, it leaves you open to the possibility of being hurt. However, it can also give you the greatest joy possible.

Part of this service is to return the favor and be open to letting the other person see you, the vulnerable you. Through service of presence, I have learned so much about myself and how I relate to other people. It is not something reserved to when I am volunteering, but rather something I attempt to integrate into daily life. Why? Because putting others before myself is how I want to live my life. It has also deepened the relationships I have because they are no longer about what I get from the other person, but what I can give. Now, I am not saying you should completely neglect yourself in order to serve others. Self-care is important, and you cannot give what you do not have. What I am saying is that service of presence helps you to approach relationships with a selfless manner, instead of a selfish one. Through serving other people I have learned more about myself and my passions than any other experience. It is through living service of presence that I have been able to see the beauty in those around me, which has brought me nothing but joy!