Forum Focus: Servant of All
Author: Alyccea Nymaessene
“In the Old Tongue, Aes Sedai means Servants of All, or something very close. The Old Tongue doesn’t translate easily.” - Rand al’Thor, Lord of Chaos chapter 42.
As members of TarValon.Net we all strive to embody the ideals of the Aes Sedai of Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series. But what does it mean to be a Servant of All, in the modern world?
The Servant of All forum gives our members a chance to discuss just that. Opened in May 2015, this newest of TarValon.Net’s public forums provides members with the opportunity to share with each other the ways in which they serve their neighbours and the wider community. This may be by providing “water and shade” to those in need, caring for the land, giving of yourself or your possessions, or any of a myriad of other ways.
What makes the Servant of All forum unique among the forums is that it is operated by the Servant of All Coordinator, Siusane al’Cuyler, under the Department of Community Outreach. It also carries the special distinction of having a member nominated each month from within those who have posted in the forum, to serve as TarValon.Net’s Servant of the Month. This special award allows us to recognise those members who are making a difference offline, in their local communities and beyond. An exclusive interview with the inaugural Servant of the Month, Ealandrelle Sedai of the Red Ajah, is featured in this issue of the Tar Valon Times.
The Servant of All forum is a place to share all of the things we do in our lives to serve others. Service may include giving somebody a ride, planting a tree, giving a friend a hug when they need it, organising a fundraiser, fostering a child, or donating time, money, or goods to a worthy cause. The ways in which we can serve are as vibrant and varied as our community itself, as evidenced by the slow but steady stream of new threads that have been springing up since the forum was opened.
If you are visiting the Servant of All forum for the first time, there are several threads worth visiting. The Resources sticky thread is a great place to check for any local causes you can support, or to share information and links to any charity and support services in your region. The Supporting Your Neighbor thread provides the opportunity to share the ways, both big and small, in which you help serve the people around you. Caring for the Land is the perfect place to discuss acts that help to protect or preserve the natural environment and wildlife. For those who are uncomfortable sharing their own acts of service, the How I Was Helped… thread is the place to go to recognise and celebrate the acts of others who have helped you when you needed it.
I highly recommend that each member of TarValon.Net check out this new forum. Consider sharing an idea or cause that you’ve been inspired to support, or even inspired to champion. Who knows, you could be the inspiration for another member to get behind your cause.
Together, our community has the ability to make a real difference in the lives of those around us. After all, that’s what it truly means to be a member of TarValon.Net.
