Thinking Back

The date was November 28^th, and I just remembered I needed to get a service paper done for my Discover NY class. I thought of it as a nagging burden, and just something I had to tough out and get over with. The next day I visited two of my friends who attends Queens College and as I was there I seen a flyer from their MSA (Muslim Students Association) about a clothing drive that they were holding for the everlasting victims in Palestine. I glanced at the paper, but didn’t think about it much because I was pretty sure only Queens College students can join in, but I was wrong. My friend and I decided to go through with it and help out with the drive which was to be held on December 1^st in the Queens College Alumni Theatre. That nagging burden certainly became a blessing when the day of the drive was completed.

The clothing drive was eye opening, because I usually am not pro active in my community, which I regret, but am very aware of the state our world is in today and also me being a Muslim. I wasn’t anticipating much with this drive because it being for Muslim’s half way around the world, I thought there would only be a small number of support since there are a lot of uneasy feelings politically in the world right now, but I was wrong. The drive began at 10 am with a boat load of people and ended at 3pm with just as much people wanting to help the cause. The most enjoyable part of the service was seeing the variety of people coming in, there were a bunch of people of all races and all cultures, giving off several kinds of donations from clothing and toys to money. The week prior to the drive had been full of nice, warm days but this day, Saturday, it was very cold and a lot of rain showers. My take was it was a symbol of the struggle we were trying to relieve. Just reading about the situation in Palestine is tough, but living through it…that would be unbearable.

My duty during the drive was to box clothing and other forms of attire, such as hats and several other items. In total I estimate I boxed about 15 boxes, and if I may add, these were pretty large boxes. Many of the clothes were worn, and were probably hand-me-downs which came to no use to the donators, but it was still very useful. Others gave brand new clothes, and I think that is very thoughtful of those donators to not only think about the people suffering, but also to spend time and money to buy them fresh clothes. I assume this courtesy helps on the other end as well because the people receiving these clothes will not feel degraded by accepting the clothes. Back to my job, the shipping of the clothing would take place on Monday so we placed the boxes in this allotted space where it would be picked up. By 2pm, the donations were done, but that was not the end of the event. The organization helped set up a lunch, for everyone who helped the drive as well as the donators who stayed around. During that lunch I met some fellow St. John’s students who were also helping out.

At first I considered doing a service was just a requirement for my DNY class and I would have to suffer for a day, but I was wrong. This experience was one that everyone should try to attain. There is a feeling of satisfaction in knowing you are helping people and making a difference in someone’s life. Knowing now about the MSA and all it brings to the table, I will definitely join the St. John’s MSA division when I get the chance next semester. As for now, I will look into other events and maybe even another charity drive or something out of the ordinary just to gather up experiences, because they can become very important in the future, and who knows what other great things it may lead to.