Since freshmen year, I have always wanted to go to Andre House with Interact. I heard other students talking about how fun it is. They talked about how they got to cut up food and serve it. It got me extremely interested. When I heard that there was a spot open, like a cheetah, I signed up as fast as I could and waited for that day to arrive.
As we were turning into a street, the neighborhood was pretty much run down. It was definitely not what I expected. The houses looked as if no one had live in it for years. Driving down, I saw a person lying on the ground. He was as still as a rock. I wasn't quite sure if he was sleeping or did he needed help, but as we got closer to the house, I saw countless of homeless people lieing on the sidewalk. There were groups of them all over the sidewalk. It seems that they were waiting for something. That was the first time I ever saw that much homeless people in my life.
Seeing all those people made my heart cry. My excitement dropped and went down the hill. I couldn't take my eyes off of them. I felt sad and wished there was something more that I could do.
When I stepped out of the bus, I saw a welcoming sign: Andre House. Andre House is a hospitality center for the homeless people in Phoenix. They provide clothes, free meals, showers and more. Andre House is completely run by volunteers. Different volunteers come everyday to help cook dinners. In other words, this is like their home.
As I enter the shelter, I was a lost child. I really didn't know what to do. I just followed all the directions that I was told to do. The first thing I did was chop up potatoes. You can hear people talking, chopping the potatoes, and throwing them in a box. There were many things to be done. It was like a symphony. We had volunteers playing the music and a lady who resembled the conductor, waving her stick and directing us what to do.
I really enjoyed what I was doing. While I’m helping, I’m also meeting new people. Andre House is a life-changing place. When it was time to serve I was totally ready. We all gathered around together, held hands together, and said a prayer. Then off we went. We all reported to our station and were ready to serve.
When the door was open, I saw a bundle of people shambling in. My body was firing up. All I had to do was smile nicely and ask “Would you like some sauce?" I absolutely enjoyed what I was doing. As people got their food they, all smiled back and said thank you. I was glad that I was at Andre House. Instead of going home to watch TV, I would rather stand here, serve and smile at these wonderful people. Just smiling at them and receiving a smile back warms my heart.
Since now I know there are ton of people in need, I learned to dedicate my time wisely. Instead of playing games and hanging out with friends, I will go out and do communities service to help those people in need along with my friends. Like Johanan von Goethe said “Kindness is the golden chain by which society is bound together.” Everyone can make differences. You never know, just a smile can help them keep going.