This past week, I bought gifts for my roommates for Christmas. I really love it when Christmas time rolls around because I think I am one of the best gift-givers on Earth. Being able to show the people who I care about so deeply that I care by getting them something they said they wanted on a whim two months ago is something I cherish so deeply.
I already gave my roommates some of their gifts because I simply cannot wait. I am the worst offender of not being able to wait till something comes in to tell the recipient.
The look on my roommates’ faces made me so happy truly down to my core. Two of my roommates have a special affinity for Little Women, so I got them Little Women-related gifts. I was able to go see Billy Joel with one of my roommates and we jammed out so hard to Scenes from an Italian Restuarant so I found the perfect Scenes shirt for her.
I think the all around idea of giving, whether it be presents, time, effort, or even advice, is an extremely special affordance of being a human being.
This past weekend, I was able to give back to my community. Our school’s chapter of Her Campus visited a local cemetery to clean veterans’ graves.
We worked in pairs and I was lucky enough to work with my roommate Claire. As we passed through the cemetery, we really took in the experience of those who were buried there. Families, couples, and single headstones with names and dates surrounded us as we uncovered the names shrouded by time.
We shared stories and cried a few times, but as we were cleaning, the sun crested over the hill of the cemetery and shone down so brightly on all of us.
When we left that day, I felt so fulfilled. Giving shouldn’t be solely about doing something because someone will recognize that you did it. The sole feeling of my roommates faces when they see I remember little things about them, or the feeling of wholeness as we left the cemetery with a bond we didn’t necessarily have before; That’s what giving is about.
It’s okay to sometimes not have any extra to give. In that situation, that’s when I hope people are gracious enough to recognize and give to you. But if you do have some extra to give, I promise this exclusive and inherently human experience will leave you feeling so blissful.