It's Always a Beautiful Day to Save Lives by Triana

It's Always a Beautiful Day to Save Lives by Triana - January 2017 Scholarship Essay

After hearing that “it’s a beautiful day to save lives” in almost all two hundred and sixty-nine episodes of “Grey’s Anatomy,” I felt inspired to give back and reach out to those in need. Because my school emphasizes Serviam, or the call to serve, and has annual community service requirements, I have had the privilege to participate in many projects, both direct and indirect service, and devote hours to others’ needs. However, a job that I do weekly has left the biggest impact on me and encouraged me to keep trying to serve others.
Over a year ago, I began to visit with a neighbor every week. Each time I go to see her, we play different games and talk—just like one would do when hanging out with a friend, which is what I consider her. However, this friendship is atypical, because I am her healthcare companion. My neighbor has Cerebral Palsy, is thirty-seven, and I was hired to play different memory games with her as well as be an attentive ear to listen to whatever it is that she wants to talk about. After spending so much time with her, it seems weird that there was a time where we did not know each other. Just by sitting down and being with someone, I have formed a close relationship regardless of our differences—age, interests, and lifestyles. Realizing how easy this was to do and seeing the positive way it can change someone’s life led me to volunteer at the Children’s Hospital of Dallas last summer, a place where I knew my presence would be changing the lives of many.
While signing up for this volunteership, the only thing running through my mind was hope that I would be assigned to a shift where I would be able to interact with and help the kids staying in the hospital. Although I have been lucky enough to have never had to go to the hospital for a medical reason, I know that it can be a terrifying experience, especially for someone so young. It does not seem fair that others are hospitalized for such severe reasons and extremely long amounts of time, especially at young ages, while people, like myself, live healthy lives. The only way this makes sense in my mind is to think of it as an opportunity to help the sick. I desperately wanted to work at this hospital so that instead of just being a well-wisher, I could actively try to help these ill children get better in whatever ways possible.
One of the most important life-lessons I have ever learned is that every single person has the one thing that can change a life: time. We have the capability of choosing what to do every day and, as I learned in both of these service opportunities, by spending our time, however much we can, with those that need us, we are making a consistent choice to make a difference in our communities.