AMH2020 student
“When autumn darkness falls, what we will remember are
the small acts of kindness: a cake, a hug, an invitation to talk, and every
single rose. These are all expressions of a nation coming together and caring
about its people.”, said by Jens Stoltenberg.
For my service project, I
volunteered to help prepare a dinner at Veterans Village. Though I couldn’t cook
food, due to living in a dorm room, I brought plates, napkins, utensils and a
box of freshly bake cookies. I didn’t know what to expect when I came to the
dinner.
As soon as I got there I was put to work right away! Though we all had
30 minutes to prepare and set out the food, everyone was running around the
place. My job was to toast and butter delicious garlic bread. Once we were all
ready and set, I was shocked about how many people had showed up. Then again,
it was free food so I understand that. I enjoyed greeting and talking to the
veterans who came. It was nice to help those who’ve served our country. Learning
about the war in our history class had made me think differently of veterans.
Before
I used to view a veteran as someone who was in the service and not thinking
about what they’ve been through. Today I think about the fear they felt, the
battles they fought hard for, and many unforgettable moments. It never really
occurred to me how much pride and success the veterans brought back for our country.
Without them risking their lives, America wouldn’t be as great as it is today. Just
looking at each veteran I can only imagine the stories they have. Most veterans
today are scarred from their previous experience in the war. I’m sure their
scarred from the things they wish they’ve never seen before. I do feel bad for
those who fought in the war and came home homeless. Giving to others and
showing kindness to our veterans at the dinner gave me nothing but joy. I do
believe there are people today who don’t show enough appreciation to our
veterans. I also believe without them we wouldn’t be here today.
My goal is
to be successful in the medical field.
Being in the medical field, you are there to help and treat others. I
believe this connects with the veterans because having medical support helped
those who were badly injured in the war. I couldn’t imagine the wounds that the
doctors and nurses had operate on. Personally, I would like to pursue a job as
a radiation oncologist, also known as a cancer doctor treating patients with
radiation. I wouldn’t mind being involved with the medical care in war, but I
don’t know if I can mentally deal with all the bloody injuries. To be in that
position you must think fast and help right away. There’s nothing else I would
rather be than a doctor to help others. I do think those who help the soldiers
in war are putting their life on the line as well because they can easily get
bombed by the enemy and all die. Today I’m sure there’s safe areas to treat the
injured during war, but you will never know what to expect. Back then we were
invaded and attack the old-fashioned way. Today there are nuclear weapons. It
scary how much the world has changed from many years ago to today. When I was
younger I did have an idea about going into the military. Although growing up,
I didn’t know how dangerous war really actually is. Not only that but the
training the soldiers must go through is intense. Being a solider you must have
no fear, and personally, I believe no regrets. I can only imagine the feeling
of coming home from war knowing that completed the mission whiling fighting to
stay alive to come back to your loved ones.
I think everyone should be proud and show appreciation
towards our veterans. You’ll see people volunteer to help the town, the
children, the schools, the sick, the homeless, and even nature. But do we put enough
time in for our veterans? After all the community service, I’ve done in my
life, I’ve never seen anyone do anything special to do for the veterans. Sure,
we’ve had letters to write to our soldiers and a food drive in school but are
we there to tell them how we feel or there to physically feed them? When I
found out about the opportunity to feed and show kindness to our veterans, I
was very pleased. Finally, something to give back and say thank you to those
who were brave and strong enough that led us to where we are today. Most kids
in school don’t pay attention to history because of how we’re taught it. Most
kids have an opinion of history being plain boring. But when you have a fun and
exciting teacher such as Dr. Soldani you’ll actually stay awake in
class. Yes, the class was challenging at times, but learning from my mistakes
on the exams, and paying attention in class made me enjoy writing multiple pages
of what I was taught instead of multiple choice. I’ve never thought I’d say
this, but thanks to this class, I now enjoy history. Also, the news makes more
sense to me now that I have a background of what has happened in the past.
Without learning about history, you won’t understand what’s it like to be a
veteran. I don’t believe we’re doing enough for the ones who are homeless
today. Why should somebody be homeless after putting their lives at risk for
others?
In conclusion, being able to speak, serve, and realize how
much of an impact our veterans are, made me show more respect for them. I think
we should have more people of our community get involved to say thanks. I did
all three proposals, the dinner, the Afghanistan box, and the Christmas gift
not for extra credit but because I believe our veterans deserve it.
