Youth Conference and Service

I don’t know how, but it’s already July. The first month of summer is over; one third of the entire summer is already gone. I just really can’t believe it. It’s absolutely mind boggling. Wow.

So far, the best part of my summer was last weekend. I was in Grand Forks Thursday through Sunday for my church’s youth conference. It was wonderful for so many reasons, and it went by way too quickly. I met a lot of new people and made a lot of friends. I played “Ultimate Frisbee” for the first time and made the winning point—nobody was more shocked than I was. I got to listen to some amazing speakers and learn valuable lessons, and I even helped lead a workshop, all while strengthening my faith. I think my favorite part, though, was the service project I got to participate in. My church (the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints aka “Mormon”) is big on humanitarianism, and we have our own charities and service programs, so I was excited to see what we would be doing for this.

The conference was held on the Grand Forks Air Force Base. On Thursday, we were divided into groups of about six kids and two adult leaders. Each group was assigned to a different family in need. My group’s job was to do yard work for a young mother, whose husband had recently been deployed. We were to mow the lawn and clean out the garage. If only I could clean my room as quickly and thoroughly as I did that garage! By the time we had finished all we could do outside, sweeping sidewalks and pulling weeds, we still had over an hour left of the time set aside for our service project. We asked if we could help with anything inside. We cleaned the main floor of the house: dish washing, vacuuming, dusting, etc. The mother had her car washed for free by some of our other youth during this time as well.

After we had done all we could do, we talked with her for a bit. She was in her early twenties but had already had several miscarriages. I could not believe how strong this woman was to be raising her three-year-old daughter all alone while her husband was away for months at a time. For a moment, I got to see into the life of a military wife and a temporarily single mother. I can’t imagine living that life, and all women in that situation completely have my utmost respect. To help her was an honor, really. In fact, to help someone, asking for nothing in return, was refreshing and rewarding. Charity is interesting in that way. I always feel like I am the one getting the more out of a service project than those I am actually helping! I only regret that I haven’t done more of this in my life so far. I am determined to be more selfless from now on, giving more and asking for less. In the end, I’m convinced I’ll actually be receiving much, much more.

Always, Anna