"Well, I was there"

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

I'm in the library now working on some homework. I have a couple of papers due at the beginning of next week as well as a final critic for my photo class, so I wanted to start on them early because this Saturday I'm going to a banquet for fencing and my parents are coming to pick up a lot of my stuff from my dorm Sunday, so I'll be really distracted.

TR also got a FREE washer and dryer today! A guy he knows is moving to D.C. and he needed to get rid of it, so TR pounced on the opportunity. Now I can look forward to doing laundry at his house instead of going on post and doing it there. That is probably one of the things I hate most about living in a dorm. The laundry facilities here on campus really bite; so much so that the Student Government is getting a new contract with someone else for this fall and then we should have all new washers and dryers! So excited for that. There is nothing worse than having clean clothes accidentally fall on the gross, wet, soapy floor in the laundry room.

I had my interview today with a veteran who started a veteran mentoring group on campus when he attended college here. It went really well and he had a lot of great things to say. I'm really excited about finishing this article.

I also asked him after the interview if the group is open to not just vets and their families, but to girlfriends too. He said of course, even to people who just want to be active in veteran affairs. That really made my day. It is hard to relate sometimes to people on campus who don't know what it is like to be in a military relationship. This group is going to become especially important to me when TR is deployed. To know that there is a place on campus where I can go and the people there understand, is a blessing. And that is the exact reason why he started it.

However, I won't be able to join until I get the article finished because it would be a conflict on interest on my part. Oh journalism ethics...

There was one moment while I was talking to him that really stood out. I was packing my laptop and recorder, just talking about my angle on the article, when he starts talking about the time he was called upon in class to explain his answer to a discussion on the war. I immediately took out my recorder again. This took place around 2004, I think. His said his TA (teaching assistant) knew a little bit about his background, so he said "why don't you explain to the class how you know that." Then he replied, "Well, I was there." The whole class went silent. And as he continued to explain what he knew, he saw that the class was listening to what he had to say. He told me that that was when he knew he could speak about his experiences. I could see that this was a really big moment for him as he began to realize that he had a "perspective no one else had".

I think that these moments, when someone is looking at you straight in the eyes and talking about something very personal to them, are what draw me to journalism. I love stories and interacting with people from all walks of life. And when they trust you just enough to sit down and talk with you, it's an amazing experience that you can't get from any other job.