Yup

            The Congressional on a Friday evening can be compared to a typical dorm back at Ohio State. Music playing, doors open, and Mario Kart causing players to shout various obscenities help create an environment for good times. However, like any dorm, it can get a little cramped, hence my desire to put on a few layers and take a walk. Although cliché, I find it relaxing to go out on such evenings and see the Monuments at night. Perhaps it is a bit cheesy to say that these late night walks are when I do my best thinking, but it is true. With the twenty mile per hour wind rushing by and the Washington Monument framed against a moonlit backdrop, reality sinks in for me.

Our program puts us in DC to help us develop familiarity with Washington and provide us with professional experience for after school. I am forever grateful for this but I am also quickly discovering that school doesn’t prepare us for the marginal aspects of life. Work can often times be monotonous, particularly with entry level jobs and internships. The creativity that schools encourage is pushed aside and many bright minds are ignored as organizational hierarchies take over.

As a third year in College, it is about time for me and my peers to begin contemplating our futures. Choices emerge, such as graduate school, entry level work positions, or even the military. The best thing we can do is maximize options by casting a wide net and seeing what we’re eligible for. However, suppose a student isn’t quite ready for the reality of life? The matrix like comforts of college is completely different from that of a post-graduate environment. Chances are, especially in DC, a graduate will find an entry level position in a non-profit or Federal organization and spend over eight hours a day in an office doing repetitive administrative tasks. The transition is an abrupt awakening that encourages someone like me to postpone that as much as possible. Personally, I can’t sit for more than an hour or two without developing a mild form of anxiety, thus spending all day in an office is a form of self-induced purgatory. However, this is the reality of life and it is the responsibility of the individual to adapt to a new environment.

On the way back from the monuments, I couldn’t help but feel grateful to be in such a position. The program did everything that was advertised. It has helped me become more politically aware, gain a series of work experiences that make me more marketable, and merge the idealist in me with a little bit of realism. My experience here has made a difference in what I want to do with my life and I will forever be grateful. As for what I plan to do following graduation, I’ll have to see what the net pulls in.

Adam K