Greenpeace

WANTED: One new or used time machine to get me through the next six days and on to the Activist Summit in Washington D.C.

I haven’t felt this hyped about anything in years. When I got the Email from Anna Wagner inviting me to the Summit I got excited…then I calmed down and the doubts set in immediately. “Yeah right. Go to Washington D.C. How? I have to work at least three of the four days. There’s no way I can possibly afford to get there. There’s no way I can afford to miss that much time from work.”

The next day Anna and I talked on the phone and her enthusiasm is contagious. She gave me several options that took away a few of the obstacles and I became optimistic again. But there was still one major roadblock: Work. I went in and talked to my manager and without hesitation she sat down with the schedule and saw that there was a way for me to go. Maybe. There were some conflicts and they were the fact that she was going to take a little vacation time that weekend. But she shook her head and said, “We’ll work it out. This is something you need to attend. This is too important.”

I was blown away! She let two days of her vacation go and gave them to me and the rest of the schedule fell in place so that I can attend the entire Summit! Ever since then I’ve had itchy feet. I want to go! Now!

 To say I’m looking forward to meeting all the people with Greenpeace I’ve been talking to on the phone and sending and receiving Emails from is an extreme understatement. But what I’m really looking forward to is the chance to learn how to be an effective activist. There are so many environmental issues facing us that at times it can seem overwhelming. I’ve spent almost my entire life wanting to make a difference and doing what I can where I can and how I can, but I’ve never had a chance to make a real difference. Well now I do. I know we’ll all of us that are attending the Summit will learn some amazing ways to make a positive impact in our communities.

Six more days, that’s all, just six.