Why am I here?

You can come to Washington D.C. to do a myriad of things. I have a friend who are working for non-profits that help the homeless in D.C., another who is working for a public relations and communications firm. People come to D.C. with interests in every field, be it engineering (the Department of Defense needs someone to design weapons) or Journalism (every news outlet has offices in D.C.). Lots of people want to come to D.C. and they do come to D.C. and they do awesome stuff. But what am I here for? Well I guess we're going to have to go way back to figure that out.

If you had known me when I was 6 years old, you would have known that I not only knew who Bill Clinton was, but also who he ran against in the 1996 election (Bob Dole and Ross Perot). While most of my friends were spending their TV time watching Full House and Step By Step, I stayed up and watched the 1996 election with my Dad. And that's when I decided that I wanted to be President of the US. So I asked my Dad what I had to do. Probably really having no clue myself, he told me that I would have to go to law school and then probably become a governor and then run for president. After hearing that, I decided that that's what I wanted to do. And as they years have gone by, my ultimate goal may have changed, but that foundational path remains.

I've been pre-law since I was 6. I've never changed my mind and there's nothing that will push me into another career path. While I've always had a path and goals, it's a little scary to be here in Washington D.C., actually accomplishing the things I always told myself I would do. I am working for a freaking U.S. Senator. I remember when Stabenow first ran for Senate against Spence Abraham and I can't believe that I actually work for her now. And as proud of myself as I am, it's even scarier to think that there's still a lot more that I have to do before I can be proud of what I've accomplished.

Last week, I got to see Hillary Clinton. While a lot of you might think that she's a scary "monster" or a crazy, power-hungry woman riding on her husband's coattails, I believe the complete opposite. I've loved Hillary since she was first lady. Her crusade for health care and her active use of the Office of the First Lady really made me admire her. And I can honestly say that she was one of my biggest influences in what I want to do with my life. And last week, I was less than a foot away from her. Unfortunately, I didn't get to talk to her or take a picture with her, but I was close to her. And it was definitely one of the coolest things I've ever experienced.

Another one of my biggest influences is Madeleine Albright, who I also got to see in person. Albright is pretty bad ass. She was the first female to hold the Secretary of State position (which is now held by Hillary!) and was also the US Ambassador to the UN. Her family escaped from the Nazis and came to America and she really epitomized the American Dream. While I may not agree with everything she did during her term (i.e. Rwanda), I love her. She is a great role model and her work in foreign policy has really pushed my interest in foreign affairs and international law.

So now, here I am. 2o years old and living and working in Washington D.C. I've always wanted to be here, and here I am. But I'm realizing that I've only accomplished about a fifteenth of what I want to do in my life. But that's okay because I'm making progress. And I'm proud of myself for taking full advantage of everything that D.C. has to offer and making the best of my time here. Who knows, maybe my time as an intern will be something I look back on when I'm a Hillary or a Madeleine in my own right :)