The local election season dust has settled and my mind is cleared from campaign craziness. My husband John and I are not rookies. The campaigning whirlwind started 14 years ago, when John first ran for local office. We know the sweet taste of victory and the punch-in-the-gut feeling of defeat. We are ‘Campaign School’ graduates and have supported many other local and state elections. Yes, Campaign School does exist.

As I reflect on the past several weeks, I am reminded of the 3 simple election campaigning rules John and I follow.
 
I thought I would share.
 
1. Stay positive.

What’s the expression? Easier said than done. Oh yeah, but it is doable. A candidate must be optimistic and confident, of course, but a professional campaign is managed with integrity and a focus on positive attributes and solutions, not belittling and character assassination. Keyboard Warriors keep negativity alive and well every day on social media with juvenile attempts at drama. I am proud we do not succumb to spreading rumors, gossip and innuendo.
 

2. Expect nothing.

We are incredibly grateful for any help we receive; encouraging words, a yard sign location, phone calls to a few friends or a short text telling us you voted. All campaigns require a tremendous amount of work, even at a local level, and it’s unrealistic for everyone to feel the same drive, passion and personal investment.  For those who share our in-it-to-win-it spirit, there aren’t enough words to thank you.
 

3. Don’t look at the voter list. (too soon after the election)

Towns maintain a list of active voters, your party affiliation and your voting history. People will look you in the eye and tell you they voted…and you think, “uh…no”. There are entire streets where people do not vote; professional, educated people - doctors, lawyers and sadly…teachers. Involvement in our local government is essential because the actions of elected officials have enormous impact on our everyday lives. Not everyone gets that, I wish they did.

 
PS. I didn’t need confirmation but there is scientific evidence to back up the sweet                     taste of victory.
       Check it out
​       https://www.npr.org/2015/09/06/438008983/just-how-sweet-is-the-taste-of-victory
​
 
Note to self: read this again in 2020

It sneaks up on you.

Gratitude takes many forms and meanings; enjoying simple pleasures like a sunset on the beach, thankfulness for food on the table and the joy brought to us by family and friends.

Each August I help with a community event in our seaside town. Our event has a name bestowed upon us by an original team member many years ago.

                                            We have a story.      

...It was a dark and stormy night in 1977, a voice echoed out of the darkness, from the heart of Padanaram in South Dartmouth, at the round table in the Whale's Tale..."Let's have a party!" Peter Travers declared, "we'll call it...the BLOWOUT!" and so a tradition was born. About 150 friends gathered that summer of 1977 and it became an annual event not-to-be-missed...more people came every year, and it grew...babies were born, and it grew...babies grew and brought their families...

Without trying, we made money and we gave it away each year to help someone. We fine-tuned our efforts to make more money.                                                   

We have a tagline: Good Fun for Good Causes

                                               We have a logo.

Every year I discover gratitude has a new face. I am inspired by their stories of courage and determination. Some are no longer with us but they are not forgotten and I am grateful to have known them.

Today gratitude has a face with solemn eyes and blonde curls. He is 9 years old and his name is Braiden.

When Braiden was approaching his 2nd birthday he was diagnosed with a JPA (Juvenile Pilocitic Astrocytoma) tumor situated at the top of his brainstem. Like so many other sick children, he has endured more than most of us can even imagine in the seven years since that diagnosis. Now a funny, loving, very brave and soon-to-be ten years old, Braiden has experienced two 13+ hour brain surgeries, a ventriculostomy surgery, a shunt placement surgery, several central line related surgeries, four years of a 24/7 I.V. infusion clinical trial therapy, 49 MRIs…and the list goes on.

Sometimes in our self-absorbed world, we forget to be grateful.

If you happen to be cruising through Massachusetts on August 8th, we always welcome new friends.

Learn more at:  http://www.facebook.com/dartmouthblowout

“Gratitude is the ability to experience life as a gift. It liberates us from the prison of self-preoccupation.” -John Ortberg, When the Game is Over, It All Goes Back in the Box