Health & Fitness
Matters of Scale
Alumnus Delaney Ryan reflects on the meaning of service work; and how works great and small matter.
For our last real day of service of the trip, we finished painting the walls of the school we started a few days ago. It was kind of a nice project because out of every kind of service we did, it was really the only tangible one. Distributing shoes and building water filters were extremely beneficial projects, but they’re not the kind of things that allow you to step back and definitively say that you have actually solved some kind of problem. They’re just small first steps in a much larger, unfathomable series of projects.
Don’t get me wrong, that’s a really inspirational thing to be a part of. But painting walls is just easier to wrap your head around. So that’s what I will talk about.
It’s funny though, I thought I was going to feel different after finishing the school. I thought I was going to put my brush down and go high five someone and talk about how great it looks and how everyone will love it and that we did really well.
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And sure, we did a pretty frickin’ good job.
But in actuality, after we finished, I almost felt bad that the director of the school and a guy that helped paint and all these people were thanking us. Even this service that seems so insignificant in the long run was such a group effort that I felt like it was I who should be thanking them for allowing me to be a part of their efforts.
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Because while they’re running around organizing projects that help mothers earn money, providing affordable health services, and supporting education in struggling kids, the very least I can do is paint their walls.
So I guess now that I have seen some of our work through to completion, I can see that there really is no finish line in the kind of service we’re doing. Painting walls probably doesn’t do a whole lot to actually improve education. But that doesn’t mean it’s not important.
Even if we spilled paint and couldn’t understand when they asked for something, they were grateful that we, a group of young Americans, recognized their situation and were really excited to try and help. And despite the small scale of our work in the grand scheme of things, we have definitely had our achievements along the way. And I do feel good about that.
