Serving the homeless during the winter months has taught two important lessons worth sharing. Youth prepared beanies, gloves, scarves and socks to be given out together as a set, to help keep the homeless warm during the biting cold of the winter. However, surprisingly, many of the homeless people would say, “Thank you, I have a pair of gloves and a scarf. Just kindly give me the other two items that I don’t have. It’s better if you give the gloves and scarf to someone else who may be in greater need.”

 

The youth observed that people took only what they truly needed and would not accept anything more that would prevent someone else from having what they needed. This taught the lesson that these people who had nothing, were not greedy, they only took what they truly needed. Their character had been moulded by the pain and difficult circumstances that they had been through.

 

In contrast, the ordinary person who has all of these things in plenty, when they are offered more, they will readily accept and very rarely think of sharing with others. The selfless attitude displayed by homeless people happened many times, not just once or twice. This left the youth puzzled…these people served as an example to everyone. And, although they may be homeless, their lives are more real, truer.

 

Indirectly, these homeless people showed the transitory nature of the material world and the faith that Life or God will take care of everything. This contrasts greatly with modern citizens, who don’t have faith in life or God. As a result, people store things again and again, and end up drowning in their own desires. Service towards people in need becomes the means for youth to inquire into thoughts and actions, to leave behind the small world centred around “I” and “mine”, and to see a tougher reality that will awaken all, trouble all, and free all from the prison that surrounds us. The small world that makes us dependant on many silly things, so that people may be able to see the truth.