Giving Day
“The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.” Gandhi
On a brisk November morning I’m waiting together with other volunteers to go inside the Second Harvest Food Bank. Helping out was the idea of Vita Collective, a dynamic and lively women’s group I joined a few months ago. Vita’s co-founders Hannah, Natalie and Emilia organize and bring together women with a focus on deepening our connection to one another and the community. Monthly networking gatherings and retreats in the greater Santa Cruz area include topics and guest speakers offering beneficial information about wellness and ways we can support entrepreneurial self-care endeavors created by and for women. https://vitacollective.squarespace.com/
When we were ushered inside to begin our shift next up was a brief orientation. I’ve known about the valuable work of the Second Harvest Food Bank for years but until today what I didn’t know was that the Food Bank has been feeding people, a lot of people 75,000, every month: children, seniors, veterans, homeless, working poor and more who need some help from their neighbors to make it through tough times. The Food Bank distributes over 11 million pounds of food every year to food pantries, schools, soup kitchens group homes, and senior centers and more. https://www.thefoodbank.org/
Once inside the warehouse we became a human assembly line filling bags with food items. I had packaged raisins. We worked well together fast and intentional and I soon realized that team work, especially knowing that our efforts were feeding hungry families, was not only bonding but touching. I mean literally touching. Every bag that came down to me was touched by our team.
The warehouse was vibrant with the sounds of fork lifts, our laughter and upbeat music cheering us on. When the song “Happy’ by Pharrel Williams filled the chilly air I couldn’t contain a few dance steps. And I wasn’t the only one moving to the groove. The energy was electric.
Clap along if you feel like a room without a roof
Clap along if you feel like happiness is the truth
Clap along if you know what happiness is to you
Clap along if you feel like that's what you wanna do
When it was announced at the end of our 3-hour shift that we had filled 1,200 bags, we all broke out in cheers and high-fives.
For the month of November in honor of Thanksgiving I have been keeping a Gratitude Journal. This is what I wrote when I got back home. Today I am grateful for the Second Harvest Food Bank for remembering and helping to feed those in our community who are hungry. Today I am grateful for Vita Collective for providing leadership and an example of how we are one human family.