You are the Gift

As a part of my internship requirements for BYU, I was required to read a portion of a talk given by Sharon Eubank titled You Are The Gift. In this talk she discusses the importance of serving others in a meaningful and impactful way. She emphasizes the importance of understanding that humanitarian service is service towards our fellow human beings and can be done by anyone at any time. This service can be anything that promotes friendship, respect, healing, and peaceful interactions.

While I was in Uganda, most of my time was spent learning from others and growing in my understanding of the health systems in Uganda, but I was also able to find opportunities to serve others. Although this was a trip centered around healthcare, I am in no way a medical professional and the service that I was able to give didn’t heal anyone of their illnesses or provide anyone with life changing healthcare, rather, the service I was able to give came in the form of playing with the children and seeing their smiles as I let them doodle in my notebook. It came in the form of laughing and playing games with the staff members and building friendships with them. It came in the form of having the village children teach us some of their dances on one of the outreaches. It came in the form of holding the hand of a woman while she was in labor. My service came in the form of being there for others and offering a smile and an open heart.

Often, we mistakenly think of humanitarian service as big donations of money and other resources. However, the most lasting kind of humanitarian service, the most sustainable, is the kindness and love that we spread to our fellow human beings. As Sharon Eubank states, “You are the gift. You yourself are the gift. It is not the clothing, the hygiene kits, the school desks, or the wells. It is you.” No matter where we are in the world, no matter where we travel or who we meet, we are all capable of serving others. When we reach out and serve others, we allow ourselves to be a gift to the world around us. We become a gift to others and we allow others to reach us and be a gift in our own lives. I can think of countless ways that the people that I have met on this trip have gifts to me in my life, and I can only hope that in my short time in Uganda I was able to be a gift to them in return.