Reflecting on the election

I started out the evening with what I'm deeming to be a pretty positive note. On Facebook I wrote:

"Here are my 2 cents on election day: don't let your enthusiasm die today. Do more than vote. Become an active participant in your community. Be a leader, or be the support role. Be something. Do something. Make a difference every day, not just during an election. We are just as important as any elected official on the left or the right."

So now that the evening has come to a close, and the results are in, I find myself coming back to my own words. I need to remind myself, that this isn't about one man or one woman. It's about all of us doing what we can to better our lives.

I'm not going to pretend that I was a total workhorse or anything, but I invested a good chunk of time, energy and passion into my first ever stint with local politics. I stepped out of my comfort zone (I mean really outside) and campaigned for Mark Post for District Attorney. I first met Mark when he spoke to my sexual assault volunteer group about our concerns (I have now been a victim advocate in my hometown for over a year). I saw something in him that I knew I wanted to know more about. Later on, I was invited to a meeting to learn more about him running for DA.

In the past several months I've really come to love Mark and his wife Donna, and several of the other volunteers, particularly Brad and Carleen. I am so honored to have served on this campaign because I got to stand for something. I got to say hey, I want my survivors to have a bulldawg (ha, UGA joke) fighting for them. I also learned a lot about working with others who are different than me. Even though politically I'm not a conservative, I worked alongside some pretty strong conservatives. The great lesson there is that if you pay enough attention to what people have to say, we all want the same things.

Coming back to the original thought with this post, I'm not going to let this discourage me (even though I've shed a few tears). I'm going to use this to motivate myself to be the absolute best I can be for my community. Because it really isn't about the one person elected in charge. It's about you, me and everyone in between and how we work to build up our community to be its absolute best.

Day Two of Thanks

Whew! I'm thankful I survived this week at work. It was a long one, but because of amazing coworkers it all worked out. So really, I'm thankful that God provided me with energy and endurance to meet my great challenges. I'm ready to take on the next one!

Day One of Thanks

Here we go again. I'm going to give it my very best effort. Here it is, 10:51 p.m. post-major event at work and I'm really in a reflective mood. I should be in bed, but I've got a million things to do before work tomorrow. Which is what I'm thankful for this evening. I'm thankful for my job. I work with some of the most wonderful people you could ask to work with. I lovingly call it my "crazy train," but I really do feel like I've made some of the most meaningful relationships with my coworkers. I'm so blessed to have my work friends who have transcended past the prefix of "work," as they are simply my friends. A lot of people have hugged me tonight and told me I did a great job, but I truly thank all of the people on my "team" who helped me. I can't do anything without the love and support of my friends, and for that, I am thankful.

So here is to a wonderful month of Thanksgiving! My favorite of holidays!!