Selfless Not Selfish

It was once said, "Happiness doesn't come through selfishness, but through selflessness. Everything you do comes back around." If you search on Google, "What is the definition of selfless?" the following is the definition that Google provides its users: "Concerned more with the needs and wishes of others than with one's own; unselfish."

Urban Dictionary defines the word selfless as, "When a person cares enough to take a risk on their own gain to do, give or say something for another person without ever expecting a token in return for the deed, act, or accomplishment made from it." What is my definition of being selfless? I define selfless as not just a single act but a way of life that entails putting others before yourself by doing good deeds for them without any desire for a reward. In the spirit of Thanksgiving, many people chose to be selfless and not selfish but, being selfless should not be just once a year. Being selfless should be a lifestyle and a mindset that you have all year long.

Over the course of these past few months, I have had the opportunity to participate in various community service and volunteer opportunities through the Duchesne Center for Religion and Social Justice at Manhattanville College. I have gone on a Midnight Run and volunteered at a farm in upstate New York. A few weeks ago, I went to All Souls Soup Kitchen in New York City to volunteer my time there. Once we arrived, each volunteer was assigned to a different station. My friend Isabel and I were on pre-wash station and did not get to interact much with the people who were in the dining hall eating their meals, but I had one interaction with a kind, Hispanic man that had a major impact on my life. At the end of the dinner service, most of the people had already left but a few people still lingered in the dining area. I went outside to get a fresh pair of rubber gloves because mine had been were filled to the brim with water and practically falling off. This man approached me while I was in the dining area on the way back to the kitchen and he came over to me to thank me for all my hard work and service to the soup kitchen and at the end of the conversation he said, "God bless you twice because you do good things." I will never forget what that man said to me at the end of the conversation. Those man's words have stuck with me ever since I went to the soup kitchen some time ago. I always know that God is with me but in that moment everything that I have been doing in my life thus far with God by my side was validated.

For me, it is the little things that make living a selfless way of life worthwhile. Even though I was washing dirty dishes for hours until my fingers were as wrinkled as a raisin, I felt so spiritually fulfilled and uplifted. Bringing other people happiness and joy through different acts of kindness, big or small, brings the same type of happiness and joy to my life that I bring to them. Knowing that I made a difference, no matter how small, in someone else's life, I feel rewarded and can sleep at night knowing that I affected even just one person. I have now decided to pursue a career in social work because I want to change someone's life for the better, even if that means just one person. My calling in life is to help those around me be better, feel better, and live better.

Being someone who is selfish, you do not nearly enjoy your life as much as someone who is selfless. Someone who is selfish is not spiritually fulfilled or uplifted. Whenever I feel that maybe I am acting a bit selfish and not selfless, I always feel horrible and empty inside. A selfish life is, in my opinion, a miserable life. Giving back, not only during the Thanksgiving and holiday season but all throughout the year, your life will be a whole lot better than it ever was before. By helping others, you will help yourself. I challenge whoever is reading this to start giving back by doing one small act of kindness such as holding the door for someone or picking up a bottle that a baby threw out of his stroller and then participate in community service or volunteer work such as going on a Midnight Run or washing dishes at a soup kitchen. Watch to see how much your life will change and how much better you will feel. Each morning you will wake up feeling whole inside knowing that you are in fact someone who is changing the world a little bit at a time. Do not complain about the world being an awful terrible place if you are not doing anything about it. Instead, get up off your couch and start being that little bit of light that helps people to remember why the world is an amazing and beautiful place.