Question to consider: In what way could I see myself passionately serving others and loving it?
“5/19
“I doubt I could feel any more passionate while serving others than when I sing in choir, especially with certain songs. I also feel a genuine love of the job in the two PTA tasks I do at Westgate. I am really going to miss library duty and Market Day. Maybe I could volunteer at AHML,” (Arlington Heights Memorial Library) “because my favorite part is shelving the books and looking for ones that are mixed up, though I will miss pulling the holiday ones – it’s like a treasure or Easter egg hunt.”
Dearest Rachel –
That were a lot of changes in our lives – both at church, and our personal lives – between 2004, when this was written, and… could I say ‘now’? Maybe call it 2020, the last point when any of us could consider anything like ‘normal’ life?
You were talking here about how your volunteer involvement would change, now that Daniel was graduating from Westgate elementary school, and would move onto junior high (which proved to be a challenge and of itself, split as it was between special needs and mainstream schooling). I can only vaguely recall your involvement with Market Day – your community involvement I remember best had to do with volunteering for the annual craft fairs at the high school, as well as meeting with other moms as part of Moms in Touch to pray for each other’s kids and the challenges they were facing.
As for your love of choir and music at church, know that you’re still remembered for that; maybe not so much from singing on the platform itself, as much as your enthusiasm that was visible from the platform, encouraging those who were up there. You also imbued Daniel with that same enthusiasm and then some, and those on the various praise teams still tell me how grateful they are for that to this day.
And it while it may have been quiet and behind the scenes, relatively speaking, there are those that still remember your willingness to clean up between services, and how you and Daniel would do so, all the dancing and singing as you made your way between the rows of chairs every Sunday. You made an impression, both with your efforts themselves, and with your enthusiasm in doing them. And that’s something to… maybe not so much as be ‘proud’ of, as to be grateful that you had such an impact despite being supposedly unnoticed.
Because you weren’t.
Letters to Rachel 