Noticing the growth
I’ve been working for a new media company here in Illinois for a year now. We celebrated our 1-year anniversary newspaper last week. We’ve definitely come a long way in a year.
I’ve joked about it with a few people, reminding them that this time last year I was still trying to convince people I was real. But I was reminded of what it felt like to be the inexperience, unknown, new guy tonight, and how I am perceived by others.
Tonight I attended the rehearsal of the high school’s mock “Dancing with the Stars” event. Last year was their first year putting this on, and it was the first big event I covered at the high school (pre- teacher strike.) So what’s cool about this event is that I can actually use photos saved from the event last year for the preview article now this year—something I’ve never been able to do before since everything we covered was new to us.
I was approached by the same ladies I interviewed last year about the event. (Sadly, I don’t remember their names )Both of them were happy for me for how far I and my publication have come. They reminisced about how uncertain they were about me last year, having only first met me and unsure of what paper I was representing b/c we were so new.
“At first we were like, who is that? What paper is she from?” the first lady said.
“And look at you now. You’re everywhere!” the second said.
I remember the second lady from the high school superintendent’s wake last year (the one that killed himself during the teacher strike I covered. Click here for that crazy story ). I was trying to work up the courage to approach the coffin, which surprised me by being open. I felt extreme guilt for having to cover his funeral the next day. Tears were running
down my face, as I stood by the door trying to catch my shit. The lady approached me to thank me for the fair and balanced coverage I was producing about the strike. That caught me off-guard, and I thanked her in a cracked voice.It’s little run-ins with people like that which have helped me understand my impact on this community. And for these ladies to approach me tonight and hug me for simply being happy for my growth over the past year is incredible.
***Photos by me from last year's "Dancing with the Stars" event
Posted by Kera at 9/2/2010 12:06 AM 
Categories: Personal Reflections
Tags: Illinois Dancing with the Stars
Categories: Personal Reflections
Tags: Illinois Dancing with the Stars
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