My Story Continues

It's not like losing a race is the end of the world. But for me, when we lost that election, I honestly had no idea what I was going to do. I had guessed my job would be eliminated, since I was the last one on the campaign and the work needed would be out of my range. That night, however, no one cared about our political, or personal futures. We just cared about the alcohol in one of the hotel rooms (and the late-night trip to downtown Chicago).

We spent 32 days working hard to get one man elected to office. Thirty-two days of pancake breakfasts and district-wide press conferences. Thirty-two days of take-out meals and late night getting home. It was the hardest period of work many of us have ever encountered. And end the end, when the votes were counted and we had lost, I didn't feel like it was wasted.

Losing isn't great by any means, but the way we enjoyed the evening, and how the loss didn't affect our fun, showed me that the experience is well worth the outcome, even if it isn't in your favor. Someone has to lose the game and someone has to win. But everyone gets to experience the fight.

What shocked me, however, was the next week when the staff was downsized. I figured I was finished with the campaign. As most of you know now, that didn't turn out to be the case. I sat down to have my meeting with the campaign manager and a consultant telling them that I was ready to be let go. One of them looked at me and said, "well then this is going to be a bit of a surprise because we want you to stay on."

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It was slow those first few months after the election. I spent more time trying to figure out what I wanted to do with my life than I did living my life. But the first of two weddings I went to this year showed me that there needs to be a life if you want to plan for it.

I drove up to the Twin Cities for the first wedding, a fraternity brother's. It was a pleasant affair, nothing out of the ordinary. What made it interesting, however, was to see how the guys have (and haven't) changed. They were all settling in nicely into life. A few were married, a few more were having children (or already had kids). But they all found a place to live and stuck with it.

Driving back, I kind of reflected a bit on my own life and what I've done. While they were getting married, I was constantly moving. While they were settling into whatever life they had, I was changing jobs often.

It wasn't that I was unhappy with where my life led me. I wasn't, and still am not. Instead, I wanted more for my life. I wanted to experience things I had never experienced before, to make the changes I needed to make and to figure out what other changes I should make.

It was ironic, then, that one of the first things my dad said when I got back to Illinois was that the church was doing a mission trip to Liberia. I didn't want to branch out that far on the new experiences limb, so I passed it off as interesting news but not for me.

That night, however, I thought more about Liberia. I have always enjoyed travelling, even for work, and have never left the United States, save for a couple of trips to Mexican border towns. I read more about Liberia that night than ever (which isn't saying much), but I didn't decide to go just then.

The following Monday was when I made a big change for myself, the change I always thought about but never did. I went to a gym. It is uncomfortable going to a gym for the first time and asking to sign your wallet away. You always read about people signing up gym memberships and then never going back. I didn't want to, but I had to something about my health. It was going downhill (like it was ever uphill) and fast.

I guess age does that to people. And maybe age is a factor in everything I've done these past six months. Never did I think that I would be able to lose 50 pounds, like I have so far. Nor did I think I would receive a ticket confirmation to fly to Africa in just 47 days. But they have happened, and so much more. When looking back on their life, people realize how much they have changed. My 10-year high school reunion was in July (I didn't go), and when I think about who I was then versus who I am now, I am amazed at how different I am. I imagine everyone is different, we all change as we get older. It's how much and how we change that matters.