In our Council meeting this Friday, we will explore this video. How does what Chris Staley say pertain to your life? Service?
Students were asked to pick out quotes and explore how these quote(s) pertained to their work in service. Write a reflection as if you were the Penn State Laureate with 2 minutes to give your own pearl of wisdom. What would you say to incoming first years in your organization?
Respond to these questions:
_____________
“In the sense of infinity and eternity, we can seem small. However, all of us want to be something”
� Have you ever felt like you are nothing? And, how did you manage this feeling?
o Have you ever felt this way when you serve or in the planning of service?
� Have you ever served someone or worked with someone who has felt like this?
� When do you feel like you are something?
“Ambition comes from both fear and love.” “Fear from possibly not being successful at something. Fear of doing something that we do not really want to do”
� How does your ambition to serve come out of both fear and love?
“How ego can get in the way of things…when you play, there is no ego” “Ego is very much about fear and wanting. And when you think about what you want, we perhaps hold onto that too much”
� Can you think of a time when your “ego” and what you want perhaps got in the way of something? Got in the way of service?
� How do you stay “playful” and other-centered versus self-centered (concentrated on your ego)?
Chris Staley talks about “playing” and not really knowing where he is going and being okay with that “evolving” uncertainty.
� Is there a time when you had to be okay with uncertainty in your organization?
o What was that like and how did were you able or unable “play” in the uncertainty?
“When we think about others we are more happy….It is that ability to have a greater awareness of ourselves and sense of curiosity and perhaps empathy and sense of wonder that brings serenity to our lives”
� Do you agree?
� This other-centeredness could be described as service and some of the benefits that come out of service. What are the non-tangible benefits you see in service?
***Write a 2 minute nugget of wisdom to an incoming member of your organization. What would you say in your Penn State Laureate YouTube video?*****
“Sometimes, when doing service, you can lose sight of why you’re volunteering. but when you see smiles of people you’re helping, doing service finally feels worth it. Seeing the end result of a project feels like an accomplishment and you get the feeling that you made the world a better place.”
In response to the first quote, students responded: “Sometimes it’s easy to feel like you’re nothing when you are planning a service trip and your work is unappreciated. However, at the end of the project when you see that you’ve helped others, you feel appreciated and it’s worth it.”
Rebecca, Jeff and I tried to interpret the fifth quote (“When we think about others…”). By thinking about others, we are able to gain a much broader worldview. We are then able to appreciate our good fortune and perhaps work to attain a viewpoint that the people with whom we interact exhibit. No man can be an island. Simon and Garfunkle were wrong. Life with others is exciting, rewarding, and awesome. It should be cherished. Thinking of others also helps give people, both others and yourself, self worth. Changing perspective allows you to see how important people are in life. It brings everyone together and creates a greater community.