Lend a helping hand to someone in need
COMMENTARY
Co-News Editor Jessica Sanders is a senior news-editorial journalism major from San Antonio.

Almost three years ago, I learned what it meant to have a broken heart.

No, it wasn’t a tall, dark and handsome man that caused me such pain, but a little girl. She had knobby knees, glasses, and a face full of freckles. Most kids’ lives revolve around school and the afternoon cartoon schedule, but her world was a homeless shelter.

During a spring break mission trip, I had the privilege to visit the Presbyterian Night Shelter and the experience will stay with me forever. Never will I forget the faces of those kids, with eyes like puppies in a pound. More than candy, more than toys, they were starving for attention.

This particular girl welcomed us into her home and gave us the grand tour: the playground, the toy room, the dining room and an introductory story about each kid we encountered. When my group left she followed us down the stairs and held on to me, crying as if she had known me all her life. And as the door closed, I could hear her pleading, “Take me with you!”

I wanted with all of my being to go back to see her every day. But I never did.

And sitting here, three years later, I wonder what it is that made me too busy. What is it that causes us to duck away when we see booths in the Student Center recruiting blood donors? Why do we promise to sign up for volunteer opportunities and never actually do it?

True, many TCU students help out in the community on a regular basis. About 700 students participated in TCU Leaps this year and many organizations around campus require volunteer hours or encourage members to help out.

But so many times we only do what we have to. What is required, convenient or easy. Take a moment and think about it, we are all so blessed. We are educated, have homes and eat regular meals. We might stress about exams and professors, but most of us don’t worry about where we’re going to sleep each night. We are the lucky ones.

I am just as guilty as anyone else. I use work, school and anything else to justify the fact that I just don’t give back as much as I could. The truth is that I, along with countless other students, am just lazy.

It takes so little to help out with a food drive, to donate blood, to spend a few hours volunteering at a soup kitchen. So volunteer, not because its required, not because it looks good on a resume, but because it feels good to help other human beings.

Think about it... our lives are good. But life can be so much better when you share it with people who need you.