Serve

I'm not sure how anyone can look at a homeless person, or poor person and see anything other than a hurting human being. I have been volunteering at the local soup kitchen, and whenever I see a person is done eating, I try to help them out by taking their plate and throwing it in the garbage for them. To me I thought of it as just a little more service, a little more kindness, and one more chance at interaction before they go back into the world. Today, I asked one of the women if I could throw her plate away, and she said sure, so I did just that. No sooner had the plate hit the trash can, than one of the staff members reprimanded me for "pampering" the guests. He told me they could throw their own plate away. I didn't even know what to say. I stuttered a few words and went back to my work. But inside my heart was breaking. Had they become so numb to the needs around them? Could they have forgotten why the soup kitchen was even there? Yes it was to meed their physical needs, but aren't their emotional needs just as important? Isn't showing them a little kindness a part of the job description? I mean Jesus didn't come to be served, but to serve... shouldn't we be doing the same? I don't know, maybe I'm not being fair to him, but I look at each of the people that come in and I know that they each must have a story, and a life, and some sort of family. they aren't just someone taking up a seat, they are living and breathing creations of God. I hope that I will never lose sight of that!