Brett's Blog Archive - Monday, November 28, 2022 - Finish the Race

If you’ve followed the blog for a while, you might remember I do a little bit of running. Well, I used to regularly. My last major race was the 2019 Big Sur International Marathon in 2019. It is a beautiful run along the Pacific Coast Highway from the Big Sur National Forest to Carmel California. The Pacific Coastline is wide open from the 4 ½ mile mark to about 22 ½ miles. It takes your mind off the fact that you’re running an otherwise insane distance.  

Due to more pressing life issues, I had to sacrifice regular running and training for races for a couple years. Well, I am slowly getting back into the swing of things. I have to tell you, the layoff and Father Time has taken a bit of a toll. 

There was a race in my area a few weeks back benefiting a First Responder who was injured in the line of duty. It worked within my schedule so, I signed up to run the 5K (3.1 mile) event. The packet pickup for the race (for the timing bib, race shirt and other swag) was Friday the day prior to the race. I checked in, gave them my name and told them I was running the 5K event. The volunteer looked up my name and said I had signed up for the 10K (6.2 miles). I asked them to double check and they confirmed I signed up for the 10K. I said, “Okay. I guess I am running the 10K then!”

The race went well. I obviously survived as I am writing this blog. 

As I was running the race, I thought about the check-in process where I found out I would be running twice the distance as I had planned. It made me think back to the time when I decided to volunteer for the Convention of States Project.  I had done my research, studied the process and the history surrounding it. It made perfect sense! DC had caused many of the problems we were facing. Obviously, they neither have the motivation, ability nor the political will to correct any of these problems. The Framers provided us this solution for such a time as this. This is the solution. The goal is to return Constitutional authority to individual state legislators. Politicians love power. We should be able to call an Article V meeting under our resolution in 4- or 5-years tops!

Not so fast! It turns out the wheels of the legislative process turn a tad slower than that. This is a good thing except when it is our issue that is moving slow!

So, what do I do? What did I do in the race when I found out I would be running twice the distance as originally planned? Did I run to the halfway point, sit down and wait for someone to come by and pick me up? Did I run out 1.55 miles, turn around and head to the finish line? Did I wake up Saturday morning, decide 6.2 miles is just too hard and go back to bed? No. I got up, headed to the venue, stretched, lined up at the start line and I ran the race. 

There were several runners who finished ahead of me. There were several runners who finished after me. I ran the race to the best of my ability that day and I finished it. My time was not anywhere close to my best times running the 10-kilometer distance. Why was that? Well, I was not as prepared as I had been in previous races. My running had been inconsistent and sporadic. I had not been training. 

This is not unlike volunteering for the Convention of States Project. When I began volunteering, I was not very proficient. This was an entirely new environment for me not unlike the first 5K I ran. I would make mistakes, learn from them and try not to make the same ones again. It was necessary to find out what worked for me. How to train. How to prepare. What do I need to do to perform my very best? 

Are we talking about running or volunteering for the Convention of States Project? Well, both!

Being an effective volunteer takes training, study and preparation. It takes repetition to find out what works best for you, how to deliver your message and how to be successful. Just as there are dozens of running training plans available, the COSP has several tools available to help each of us be effective advocates for liberty. It is up to each of us to train to be the best volunteers possible. We all have different God-given talents. Some will be faster than others. It is our duty to be the very best WE can be.

The process will be difficult at times. We will face obstacles and challenges that require additional effort to overcome. Each of these challenges will make our successes more rewarding. It took decades of being outworked by the opponents of freedom to arrive at the point we find ourselves now. It will take more than a few years to reclaim our republican form of government and restore our Constitution.

When I take my final breath, I want to be comforted knowing I gave every measure of myself to the advancement of liberty. I want to be able to confidently answer the question, “Did I finish the race?” What will your answer be? 

In liberty,

Brett