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The Power of Giving
I was confused as my aunt escorted me to the kitchen with bustling cooks and servers in ultimate chaos in the Anna’s House in Hadaewon- dong, Korea. My aunt worked as a volunteer for the Anna’s House, a homeless shelter welcoming any mendicants or the homeless with warmth, food, shelter, blankets, and so on. Women in white aprons were chopping carrots, stirring the soup with their ladles, and adding flavored spices to cabbage for the kimchi side dish. I did have the idea that this was the homeless shelter for many Koreans, but I didn’t know how much effort was involved in the operation. I was touched as hundreds of men, women, and children stood in lines to get their served meal in the evening and startled as well. So many people in our country were starving and poor, and I was isolated from my own country, disillusioned by the privileges I lived in and I looked at the people in the Anna’s House with a bond- a connection I had never had before. A sudden rush of energy swept over me as I started to wash dishes and trays at the back of the kitchen. Now people were handing in their trays after their meal, and I was working desperately than ever to keep up with the pace. My second job was to hand out the steaming bowls of rice, noodles, spiced chicken as the people shuffled forward one by one to get the food. Scooping up heaps of the Korean noodles, I gently placed them onto every tray with care and I watched my aunt starting a conversation with one of the regular comers who seemed appreciative and just like every one of us serving them. As I turned my head, a young and innocent girl looked up to me and with her hands outstretched for her food. I smiled as I gave the food, her eyes brightening up as she gave me a small nod in return of thanks. No matter what, she was a child just like me, a Korean just like how I am one as well. I now understood the passion my aunt works with in this homeless shelter, and this made me one step closer into bonding with my Korean people. I knew this would be one of many experiences I would have in helping people who needed it, in the country I called my home: Korea.
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