I scrolled back through my blog and journal this morning reflecting on some big times when political action has really set my spirit on fire.
Here is an email I sent to a few of my political driven, Hilary supporting, "or anyone but Trump", friends the day after the election:
Today I sat in sadness for a second in sleepy haze of the wind taken from my long awaited victory. I recalled the marches in that second that I stood hand in hand with my mother, my grandmother, my sisters, my friends. and my daughters. I paused at my memory of my sisters swollen belly with her first pregnancy and my grandmother being driven by my dad around the square so she could be there. I gasp for a breathe as I recall a text from Steff who I supported me in so many ways giving me praise for the protest. I recall me charging through news anchors to confront Gov. Brownback at a public event for taking away our access to safe birth control via our local county commissioners...oh and the face of my very passive brother in law holding a video camera as I made him promise to write policy with me to fix it. And that man that I was so angry with hugged me and it was genuine and he called me the next day and he connected me....and damn it he did a lot of damage in Kansas as he moved forward. Because of that hug I've never forgotten that he too is a human and while we disagree I love him anyway. I love him enough that I never back down to him. It's my job to rise up. It's my job to rise up along side other "nasty" women and men that choose love in such a powerful way that we carry this country and the universe to love. After the second passed where I saw a divided county I found fear of war on American soil, a crash to the global economy and then I rolled over and there I found me. Me the mover and the shaker that has rose up through personal heartbreak and me that has sat on endless protest and me that has pumped my fist as I spoke a rallies for free choice.....I found me. The change. Thank you Hilary for fighting like a girl.....I'll keep fighting too.
Last year as the Kansas budget was released the program that I very passionately work for was proposed to have a big change and the possibility of eliminating the program all together was very real. At that time I was still very foggy in grief with the loss of my best friend and had just started back to work. I received a phone call from co-worker calling me out to wake up a few days after the budget was released. She said, "Callie, I need you to get to Topeka today, if all you do is just get there and sit with me, I need you there." It really was all I could do to get dressed and drive to Topeka, the thought of it exhausted me, the action of it...woke me up. We had quite a year with our program and we have made some major changes that we are still advocating against. The co-worker that woke me up, sat with me, wrote with me, had all night phone calls with me through the entire session, and she hugged me everyday and thanked me for my work. When we closed our fiscal year this summer, I transitioned my role with our state association and gave my first Executive Director report. Somehow through what has been the toughest part of my journey, this co-worker found me. I am unconventional and the President of our board can tell you I drive her a little batty with my big ideas and lack of concrete thinking; my ED report was unconventional as well. I did write out the "required" details for the board, but this morning I found my journal notes of what I said.
Thank you, Nancy for all you have done for Kansas Kids and families and thank you for all you have done for me. You were my trainer when I started as a Parent Educator and you were the recruiter when you discovered my love for politics. But more than that, you have always believed in me and you have always expected greatness from me. You never expected super-human acts, but you never let me sink or settle. I will forever be grateful for the push you have given me and the phone call you gave me just asking me to show up...you found my fire again and I love you.
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| If you look at the last row of this picture you'll see two people hugging, rather than posing....that's Nancy and I |
