A Season of Service (Both Giving And Receiving)

In late April and early May, there were a lot of opportunities both to provide service to the community, and to be recognized for service to the community. Nathan and I both have a variety of service activities we've been working on throughout the year, and it was flattering to be recognized for them (even if we really didn't need the recognition).

As I've mentioned before, I spent most of the previous school year working weekly in the library of the nearby Continental School District. For about two hours a week, I was responsible for sorting and re-shelving the hundreds of books checked out by those students. I have long wanted to work in a library, and I thought this was a perfect way to begin that journey. For some reason, shelving library books is very soothing to my OCD brain; the service became my "moment of Zen" in each hectic week. I also grew close to the school librarian, Geraldine, over the course of the year; I loved talking to her, working with her, and learning from her.

So, in late April, I was invited to a volunteer appreciation brunch at the school. To be honest, I was a little nervous about attending, since I only visited the school about once a week. What's more, my kids didn't even attend the school; I felt like quite the outsider at this brunch (even though the food was quite yummy!). Geraldine bought me a beautiful potted plant (which I tragically killed a couple of weeks later; I am not very good with plants), and proceeded to tell the whole school staff how helpful I was. It was pretty squirm-inducing, but flattering at the same time. Just a few weeks later, I shelved my last books for the year, but not before promising Geraldine that I'd return the following year to help out. As service opportunities go, it is not earth-shattering, but it has been a great way to help a local school. I can't wait to start it up again when the school year gets underway.

Nathan, for the last few years, has been doing a different type of service...he serves on the Town of Sahuarita's Planning and Zoning Commission. It's not a paid position, and to hold it, he had to be nominated by a sitting Town Council member (initially, he was nominated by Council Member and friend Kara). Being a commissioner isn't a huge time commitment (he has to attend a nightly meeting once a month or so), but it has a decent amount of responsibility attached. He sometimes has to participate in votes concerning various town planning/expansion issues. Working as a commissioner has been a rewarding experience for Nathan, and has enabled him to connect with a lot of town employees and volunteers.

Every year in late April, the Town of Sahuarita hosts a Volunteer Appreciation Banquet. Nathan is always invited, and allowed to bring one "friend." In past years, he has taken Lorelai or Celeste, and they've both enjoyed the night out. But in the last year or so, I've been Nathan's date. This year, the banquet was moved from its usual location (the large Sahuarita Town Hall building) to a Del Webb (active senior) clubhouse located in our neighborhood (Rancho Sahuarita). This turned out to be a good move; the clubhouse was a lot roomier than the Town Hall, and allowed for a more comfortable banquet setting. The dinner was catered Mexican food (yummy!), the entertainment was amusing as usual (one of the town's senior police officers donned a Three Amigos outfit and sang faux-mariachi music to the guests), and the prize drawings were fun. We didn't get a prize this year, which disappointed us a bit (Nathan has been a winner almost every year so far!), but overall we were very grateful for the yummy dinner and the nice evening out.

But although it was nice to attend these "appreciation" ceremonies, it was also nice to do actual volunteer work. Our whole family got that chance on April 30th, when our LDS Stake hosted a Day of Service at the local stake center meetinghouse. The whole stake was invited, and there were several different service projects available to work on throughout the building.

I spent most of my time in the Primary room tying knots along the edges of blankets. There were about 200 blankets to work on, so my fingers were pretty tired when the morning was over! These blankets were to be included in "chemotherapy kits" for children admitted to Diamond Children's Medical Center in Tucson. These kits had been assembled earlier that morning, with the help of Nathan and the girls, who'd arrived at the church building a bit before me. Most of us also stayed later to help out with the blanket-tying, as well. Lorelai in particular really enjoyed tying blankets, and she was able to chat with some helpful friends while doing so as well.

Other rooms had different projects available. In one room, kids and adults could create hand-made greeting cards to send to military servicemen, via the Daughters of the American Revolution. In another room, there were large blanket being made for Project Linus, an organization that provides blankets for children in need. Kids were able to trace stencil images onto quilt squares to help make these blankets even more friendly and inviting. The girls loved tracing these animal pictures (with the help of several electric light tracers), and they all spent a very long time at this station!

There were many, many other projects that we sadly didn't get to help out with personally, but which I am so glad were offered nonetheless! One project was the construction of four garden boxes (in Arizona, these "boxes" are often used in lieu of planting gardens directly into the thin soil). These boxes would be used at a local "boys home," a place providing safe refuge for troubled youth and/or youth in the foster system. This home is run by the husband of a friend of mine, and I was very excited to hear about this great addition to their efforts!

In another room, several women were hard at work on their sewing machines to create burp cloths and newborn "booties" for many future mothers. Some other "offsite" service projects offered that day included some heavy yard work for those unable to do it themselves, and a singing project at a local assisted-living home. Last but not least, there was a room available for visitors to check out their family history and begin researching their ancestry online. Lorelai has become very interested in this online service and I was so glad she was able to learn more about it.

Overall, about 250 people showed up at the stake center to give a few hours of service. I was so proud of my girls for staying at the service event the entire morning, helping out at various stations all the while with virtually no complaint! As for myself, I'm under no illusions that I was a major contributor. Some of the main event organizers are friends of mine, and I am in awe of their hard work and passion, and how much they can accomplish. Compared to them, I am strictly a minor player! But it was fun for me to give a little time in service, visit with friends, and see all the great services being offered. I only hope that the little work I did will mean something to someone. And I certainly hope that another stake-wide Day of Service will happen again; I would be more than happy to participate!

While I'm on the subject of service, I might as well conclude this blog post with services done for me, on Mother's Day. Even though I consider Mother's Day one of the more "minor" holidays, I am still so grateful for my kids (and my husband) who take it upon themselves to spoil me and pamper me every year. I don't know if they'll be doing it forever (I suspect as the kids get older, Mother's Day won't be quite as "cute"), but I am so grateful for everything they do for me on that weekend.

The Friday before Mother's Day, I was invited to Aurora's kindergarten class along with all the other moms. The whole class sang us a few adorable tunes.

Afterwards, we had a small brunch with our kids, and we were given our "gift"...a construction-paper corsage.

 

I loved it so much I wore it to church the following Sunday! What a sweet gift, and what a sweet girl.

Here are some of the other beautiful gifts the girls made for me this year.

 

 

 

Nathan didn't forget about me, either; he got me a new apron! Hooray; I really needed one!

I also got this nifty coloring book...

I think I will take this thing to Comic-Con with me this month! I have wanted an adult coloring book for a little while now (they are all the rage these days, since they supposedly aid in relaxation), and I am looking forward to playing around with this. Plus, it's nerdy, so...bonus!

Nathan was also kind enough to make a delicious breakfast for me, and for his own mother, "Grandma Barrett." It was delicious and the company was great!

 

So while I am very grateful for the many opportunities I have had to give service over the last few months, I am also so very grateful for the service I have received. Sometimes, it's just nice to be appreciated for who I am. I hope I can be the kind of mother my kids need and deserve. I also hope I can pay all these kindnesses forward, by seeking out other service opportunities in our community and beyond in the future.