How to humble yourself in one step...

So Xmas was always going to be different this year. Being away from home, away from family, having Xmas day in summer 12,ooomiles from home i had to make it all i could but i never thought i would find such an experience.
Two weeks before leaving the UK i sent an email to the Auckland City Mission asking if i could help out at their Xmas lunch serving the Aucklanders who are not fortunate enough to be able to afford a Xmas day meal. A few weeks later and i got a reply back saying i had been selected as a volunteer to help out on the day. There were a huge array of jobs to do and i signed up for as much as i could, keen to get the most from the experience. I started at 6.30am with decorations which involved laying tables for the 2000 expected guests, assembling the trees, moving all the stage equipment in for the entertainment that was provided, and then getting stuck into the helium balloons which was great fun. We worked in teams of about 8-10 on each task and i had such a good bunch whilst doing the ballons, each person so happy and joyful, all with the same ideals about what Xmas is really about. Once the decorations were set it was time to don my shirt and tie, ready for waiter service for the guests meal. My team and I were operating in the red sector of the hall and covered about 250 guests. As we took the meals out you could see such a mix of people, from a huge array of social, cultural and racial backgrounds all there together, so happy that they had the opportunity to take part in the Xmas of their dreams. With each meal i served, i saw the purest and most sincere gratitude on the faces of those at the tables. It was such a far cry from anything i had ever seen or experienced before in my life, and an action i would be intensely keen to repeat in years to come. Each guest also received a present from Santa, and watching smiles evolve as people young and old unwrapped gifts was beyond comprehension.

The whole experience was a rolloercoaster of emotions. I experienced the highest of highs, so happy that i had chosen to make my Xmas gift one that so many people could appreciate. I also felt incredible lows watching those who were in sheer desperation and clearly on times harder than i could comprehend. At one point, i had served an elderly couple at one table and saw them eat only a couple of mouthfuls before rolling the food into a napkin and putting it into their bag, They looked so frail together, so scared of the world, and worried about what it was dealing them and i thought of the reason why they might be taking the food. Were they taking it home for family who hadn't managed to get a ticket to the event, or were they going to make the food last over the next fews days as they had nothing else? Either way, it hit me heard and i was pretty choked up from it. As the meal finished, i helped them to the door with their bags and made sure hey were on the way to the correct bus stop, and after saying goodbye as i turned back to the arena to see the other guests away and clear up, my eyes were full of tears. It was a completely pivotal moment in my trip here, and my life to this point. To see people with so little really makes you appreciate what you have and what a little thing like giving someone a bit of your time to make them feel both appreciated and important can transform them, and you too. This trip has taught me so much about life, and about me too. I am a different person to that which stepped off the plane two months ago and the way in which i apporach life is altered forever. I have found a deeper part to my character than i was aware was there, waiting to be unearthed. What a trip this has been, and i'm only two months in.......