Saints at Home – Micaiah Lowe; it’s a blessing to serve other people…
Since studying at St Andrews, Micaiah Lowe (MA 2019) has gone on a journey of growing self-awareness from being ‘a young fresher who thought the world was mine for the taking’ to bringing the student-led movement StudentsAgainstCorona to the USA – a global group co-founded by his good friend and also a St Andrean, Frederik Filz (BSc 2018). They are currently operating in more than a dozen countries, having facilitated the aid of more than 100,000 people worldwide. Micaiah, now helping lead OCAgainstCorona, shares his story here.
Working at Chick-fil-A and living in my parents’ home (again) was not what I expected after graduating from St Andrews. In fact, my first year in Fife I remember dreams of numerous accolades, leaving a mark––and while we’re at it, why not tea with the Queen? I was a young fresher who thought the world was mine for the taking … fast forward four and half years, add some humbling moments, a pandemic, and a student-run charity: all I can say is I’m lucky to have a place to live, let alone a job.
I can’t remember where I heard it – probably from some Facebook post – but a famous psychologist once said, ‘The single most powerful thing that ruins any marriage is unmet expectations’. That always stuck with me. Well, what if your marriage isn’t to a person? I would never have said this before, but I was in a committed relationship for a while – with myself – or with the idealistic version of who I needed to be. Long story short, as in many marriages with unmet expectations, it ended in divorce (buddy even won full custody).
My ego and I went through our first bumps when I was left out of the flatting arrangement my second semester at St Andrews. My close friends from freshman year felt that living with me would prove difficult. I didn’t realise this until later, but I was a difficult friend to have. People closest to me felt I never really cared to listen to their thoughts or help them through their problems: I was always so concerned with my own situation that I rarely turned an eye to others. My ego cost me more than a rooming situation – it cost me an entire friend group, which was a hard lesson to learn.
A year later I remember a fondue dinner party, which happens from time to time in St Andrews. By then I was making an effort to care more for what others had to say. After the party left, my friend and I were having a conversation in which he firmly stated: ‘I believe God is no different than Santa Claus’. Of course, the wonderful tact of any St Andrean is agreeing to disagree. At some point, after enough pints, politics and religion go out the window. Unfortunately, we had not reached that number of pints yet. By this time the marriage to my ego had become quite rocky. I listened to what he had to say for a full 30 minutes then he allowed me to reply. I explained my Christian beliefs and my understanding of who God is. To my surprise, he listened to me without one interruption. Our willingness to listen to one another despite differences created a lasting bond to this day.
Years later, my aforementioned friend, Frederik Filz von Reiterdank, helped found a student-led initiative called StudentsAgainstCorona at the onset of the Coronavirus crisis. The idea was simple: Have students run errands for people who are self-isolating. As soon as I saw what he was doing on Facebook, I called him to bring the movement to my community in Orange County, California. I had already been getting groceries for a mom with four kids and for an elderly couple, but I knew there were more people in worse situations than myself and I wanted to help.
For the last month, since the crisis started, alumni and current students of St Andrews and other universities around the world have come together to help their individual communities. Looking back, it truly is a beautiful thing to see fellow Andreans, who were former drinking friends, grow in friendship through serving those in need. To see our movement help over 100,000 people across the globe has been a joy in and of itself. In my own neighbourhood, it’s been such a blessing to see hope spread through a seemingly dreary season.
At our weekly food drive––our last one helped around 400 people––I walked from car to car asking drivers how they’re feeling and listened to each of their concerns. As I stepped away from a woman who had three children, she thanked me for providing food for her family. From force of habit, I replied, ‘My pleasure!’. At Chick-fil-A we’re trained to say, ‘My pleasure’ (insert cowboy accent) in lieu of, ‘You’re welcome’. However, only then did I realise the truth to that expression. It genuinely was my pleasure to be serving her and I have received immense joy from caring for others, not only myself.
I can’t tell you when exactly I divorced my ego; nevertheless, it was the best thing that ever happened to me. If it wasn’t for walking through many unmet expectations in the last few years, I wouldn’t know how to care for my own community. I believe the love I have for others comes from an even greater love. In the past, I understood who Christ was, but I never knew what that meant or looked like in my life. It was only through unmet expectations that I came to know the words I spoke at that fondue dinner party years ago, ‘For God so loved the world …’.
Today, I continue to learn the value of serving others in a way I never did before, of bringing communities together and giving hope to people in need. I believe anyone can bring hope to their community during this crisis no matter their background. All we need to do is open our eyes to the needs of those around us and lend a helping hand.
Micaiah Lowe, April 2020
If you would like to get involved or need help in your own community please contact me at [email protected] or StudentsAgainstCorona at [email protected]