Compassion and kindness to me is the act of helping out a cause out of goodwill and heart. In this environment that I have grown up from, I was able to experience and overcome obstacles that have helped me grow. Throughout these years, I have been able to immerse myself in this community and learn new things that helped build me up. I have experienced the situations of growing up as an Asian American in East Los Angeles, as well as giving back to my community for all that they have done for me.
Since the beginning I had wanted to be seen as a student that stands out for my pride in academics and my identity. I strove to do better, by studying and working hard in all subject fields. Despite many challenges as a student, I realized that I had support from my friends, family, and teachers. With their help and kindness, I continued to strive to do better and to develop new study habits for myself.
I am grateful for the people that have watched over me and guided me throughout the years. Through my compassion to give back to my community as well as help others, I took part in Interact Club. The club facilitates fundraising and donating to help important causes in the community, the country, and other parts of the world. We host fundraisers that help contribute towards buying life straws, polio vaccines for many patients that cannot afford them, and supplies for animal shelters to use if there are minimal supplies to aid the animals there. We have worked to feed the homeless in our area, participated in beach clean ups, and visited the AltaMed Senior Center where we talked to the seniors, some who had families who were unable to visit, and listened to their stories. This is important to me because I enjoyed listening to my grandparents’ stories and this correlated with my first time visiting the center. I was delighted to hear their great stories and experiences that they had to share. The projects and fundraising that I have done with Interact Club helped me to continue my goal to give back to my community and others.
I learned that no matter how much you are able to do, it will not be a major change in helping the community. Rather, it is a small part that would contribute towards benefiting the whole, one step at a time. Small contributions will also inspire others to follow along and contribute, to continue working towards a better community. At the moment compassion is vital for our current society because we are in a pandemic that has affected everyone. It would be great for everyone to support one another and do each other a kind favor whether it is service for COVID testing, or even just help out a person and ask them how they are feeling. These small acts can really make a person's day and spread it positively. |
