Serving on the Sidelines by Elizabeth

Serving on the Sidelines by Elizabeth - January 2017 Scholarship Essay

Throughout my life, I had always thought I was “too busy” due to sports, clubs, and other special interests to find the time to serve my community. However, as I entered my first season as a high school lacrosse player, I learned that I had plenty of time. Together, my teammates and I had to elect two or three juniors to be the Junior Service Leaders for our team. Once elected, the Junior Service Leaders had to communicate with the team, as well as each other, about small service projects that the team could participate in. The ideas that these young women pitched to the team made me realize that you do not need to block off an entire day to make a difference in the community. All you need is about fifteen minutes.
In just fifteen minutes, our lacrosse team was able to hand make about 50 cards to send the patients at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Seeing the joy that it brought to the faces of my teammates and myself, I knew right away how much it would brighten the patients’ days. Taking this small amount of time out of my day to stop and do something as simple as make cards for children made me realize how easy it was to give back. Blocking off fifteen minutes still gave me time to do my homework, spend time with family and friends, and still do the things I love.
Seeing that just fifteen minutes could help make someone’s day has inspired me to take the little moments to brighten someone’s day. It only takes one second to say, “hi,” or to smile at someone who might need something small to brighten up their day. I have noticed a difference in the way people in my community act when small acts of kindness happen to them. When a door is held or a smile is flashed, members in my community tend to pay it forward by doing the same for others. These small actions have turned into a domino effect and the actions keep going. My school has about 350 student enrolled in it and seeing how positive it has made everyone inspired me to spread it to other places outside of school; in the grocery store, at the mall, or even at the gas station. This domino effect has inspired me to spread the small acts of kindness to other places because, once they are spread, they will continue to spread all over the world.