To conclude this series exploring quotes that make up the foundational ethos of the mission, I want to highlight two, bringing the last two journal entries in this series into one.
Speaking of her time leading the Underground Railroad, Harriet Tubman said this:
“I never ran my train off the tracks and I never lost a passenger.”
What’s inspiring to me about this statement is that Harriet’s leadership included politics, civil rights, forward progress, the human experience as it should be, severe personal trauma, contemplative faith, leading teams—and physical endurance.
I started Liberatus in 2015 partly because it’s ambiguous what exactly we were fighting for in Congress. While we said we were fighting for freedom, in the words of former Congressman Raul Labrador, Capitol Hill “is a place that just sucks your soul.” But why?
“He’s a principled conservative.”
After working within the conservative movement, it’s not clear to me what this statement means.
But I think it means something like this: There’s a conservative view of things that is the truth, therefore, he stands on that truth no matter the costs, achieves top marks on legislative scorecards, and those who don’t hold to principles might be nice to people but they’ll never be champions.
Today, often the farthest we go with this advice is to say that we should “turn down the heat” when things get too ugly. But to govern the country well, we need constructive parameters for what it means to restrain partisanship, in the same way that Olympic athletes have constructive parameters for how to perform at their best, follow the rules of their sport, and uphold sportsmanship.
What’s it all about? This week, as we conclude our series on A Desert Journey, our focus is on hope rising, on awakening. Read one congressional staffer’s short perspective today, look out for the announcement coming tomorrow, and our regular journal will continue Wednesday with A Story of Awakening.
The rules and values President Washington lived by established humility, respect, and other admirable traits we desire to see in leaders today. The values set forth during his time developing leadership would guide him through his presidency. As aspiring leaders, we should use this time to establish our own set of values, build up our character, and hone vital leadership skills.
Making your way up the Ryan Mountain trail, your mind will almost sink into the desert landscape stretching out in every direction. The contrast between the busy, crowded streets of Washington and the desolate emptiness is sure worth the cross-country flights it will take to find it. If you need space to let the earth clear your mind, you’ll find it in Joshua Tree National Park.
What can we learn from the tenacity of Martin Luther King? In the midst of those dark days, when nothing in the world seemed to match the vision in his heart, how did he inspire millions of Americans to persevere in their struggle to attain equality? Why are the bonds that tie us together as Americans being ripped apart today?
Much to my dismay, the process of finding fulfilling employment proved to be a grueling endeavor. The process of walking through a desert of difficulty challenged me to reevaluate the vision I brought to D.C., and to entertain the possibility that something more fulfilling and beautiful could be mine . . . if I was willing to wait for it.
We need to see that burnout isn’t actually burnout. What I mean is, it happens for a reason; it’s a symptom of much deeper and larger issues. The short of it is that—as I have seen firsthand over the past decade—the unity of Truth and Beauty in political culture is so rare that we need to begin building a new framework to rethink how we engage from the inside.
