Nostalgia from my Republican Friends

During the summer of 2005, I was serving as a Congressional Intern in Washington D.C. During an off-week in Congress (and there were many that summer considering it has come to be known as the "Do-Nothing" Congress), my colleagues and I were invited to a series of political speeches at the Democratic National Committee Offices just down the street from the Hill.

The speakers at this event included former Presidential candidates Congressman Dennis Kucinich of Ohio, Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa, and Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts. On the day of the event, I bought a little disposable camera at a magazine shop near my apartment building.

Despite Kerry's disappointing loss in the 2004 Presidential race, it was a hot ticket especially for a bunch of college students who had been surrounded by cornfields for most of their lives. At the event, we chose to skip out on Kucinich's speech and join the welcoming party for Sen. Kerry on the front steps despite us having nothing to do with the planning of the event.

As we stood in line, we readied our cameras just hoping to get a glimpse of the former Democratic Presidential Candidate. For a college student with any interest in politics, the opportunity to see a major political figure despite their success/failure in getting elected is a big opportunity.

Much to our surprise, not only were we able to get a glimpse of the Senator but each of us were able to get a picture with Mr. Kerry. My good friend Cade and I also posed for a picture with Sen. Harkin along with commending him for his performance in the 1993 Kevin Kline film "Dave."

After a celebration that involved going to a local pub in the middle of the work day for hot wings, I took the little disposable camera to a local printing shop to get the pictures developed. Much to my surprise, the picture turned out better than expected so I took it back to the printing shop and got it framed.

This evening, I had some friends over to hang out along with see me new place. As my friends were looking around, they noticed my picture with Senator Kerry on one of my office bookshelves. Even though they could not believe that I would even keep a picture such as that one (some of them were Republicans), the events and the memories of that day put a smile on my face even though it occurred over three years ago.