Poli-Chick's Triumphant Return

Today I went door knocking for the first time in 2 years. The experience provided some synthesis.

I really enjoy door-knocking, especially when it is to share information, encourage voting and calculate support. I like it because I am not trying to GET anything more than the information the people want to give. I get to see different parts of my community, walk around out side and support causes that are important to me.

Last summer, when I applied at Environment Minnesota, I figured that it would be a similar experience to what I had done before. Since it was so different and horrible, I feared that I had changed from before, and that today would be very difficult.

I had even begun to grow wary of political activists, assuming that everyone who enjoys political field work must be crazy, hyper enthusiastic, extrovert-types with pushy attitudes. While these characteristics DO benefit the field worker, many different personality types can be of use in this work.

Antithesis occurred when I went to college, after Tim Faust's campaign against Judy Soderstrom, and the election of Barack Obama, I settled into my new lifestyle and politics retreated to the archive of interests past. This is shocking considering HOW much I felt that politics made me tick summer of 2008.

When I started classes that fall, I had to make quick decisions about which activities warranted my time and energy, and since political activism was on the chopping block, I figured that it was because I didn't care anymore.

I see now that this is not so. The kind of work I did today is something that I enjoy doing. It doesn't mean that I have to become a Poli Sci major and intern in Washington... or maybe it does! For now, it means that I get to do some meaningful volunteer work when I have time over the summer, and I am happy that this is still part of my life.

Democratic Primaries August 10th!