Thankful

As part of orientation, the law students went to different volunteer service sites today. My group went to the Greater Chicago Food Depository to package food. We took apples out of large bins and placed them in smaller boxes to be shipped to different soup kitchens and food pantries.

During our task, I started thinking about how busy this upcoming week will be. There is an optional all-day event tomorrow that starts at 8:30 AM that I committed to attend. There are the different chores in the house to manage. There is the reading for class next week. The first day of class is next week! I started to feel myself move towards complaint and whining.

Then I remembered that we were at a food depository for people who are food insecure. The people who are receiving these apples have a much harder time than i do. At tomorrow’s event, I will have to choose which sack lunch to eat. They may have to choose between a meal for themselves or a meal for their children. I have to choose between relaxing this weekend and preparing for class. They might have to choose between buying medicine or buying food.

I started to be filled with thanksgiving. I am thankful that busy people are taking tomorrow to invest their time into my professional development. I am thankful that I have the opportunity to learn at such an amazing school. I am thankful that I have family and friends who support me. I am thankful that come this winter, I don’t have to worry about whether I can afford a warm meal or warm clothes.