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Reflections on National In-Service Day
What a great tribute to Martin Luther King if his birthday became more than just a reason to hold a “store-wide” clearance sale. What if we had a “dayon” rather than a “day off?”
Our family took the morning to help clean up a beach here on one end of San Francisco near the famous Cliff House. We arrived promptly at the starting time, only to find a line for volunteers. The beach was covered with families all carrying white bags who were all chipping in to pick up garbage. There were so many people that there wasn’t enough garbage and the kids were disappointed that there wasn’t more to do. Imagine if we all helped so much that there weren’t enough homeless to shelter, kids to teach, or beaches to clean to keep us all occupied?
While kids do get distracted and like to goof off during these types of events, I find they are always interested in helping out and proud of having done so. We often quote Dr. Robert Brooks and his books on developing self-esteem in resilient kids and how important it is to give kids opportunities to help. These are often some of their most vivid memories of childhood.
Next month, we volunteer at a soup kitchen and our kids, 4 and 8, will go along to help out. They will distribute salt and pepper, help serve dinner and take part as they can in the clean-up. It’s not a lot, but it makes us all feel good inside.
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