Coffee, Gum, and a Brownie on The Hill

Sometimes, we get caught in a sprint – moments of speed in life when you're pushing yourself through an experience and engaging with your physical, mental, and emotional limits.

We've all experienced these seasons at work and in various activities. As a (very occasional) runner, I find myself more able to speed up and slow down than endure for miles – sprinting knowing that I will have a chance to stop.

The same is true when I'm writing or teaching until the next break. I lose track of basic needs while charging through class periods and piles of papers to mark before the final bell rings.

Part of what facilitates the flow state of a sprint, or "being in the zone", is that it is bookended by moments of stillness. These periods of reflection, the promise of time, enable us to digest what we have accomplished and understand how operating under constraints helped us grow beyond them.

As I lean back in my chair in the twilight of what has been the most pressurized and challenging school year in recent memory, I am not disappointed. Rather, I am in awe of what we – students, teachers, and families – have collectively deployed to keep our learning communities alive.

Our story of sprinting and belaying this week is about Beth, a former Capitol Hill staffer, fellow busy eater, small farm aficionado, and now writer. Beth's commitment to her community took her all the way to Washington, D.C. where she discovered her love of service – in the zone.

Pressing Forward

It took Beth Bellizzi seven years and a whole lot of professional shuffling to land her gig as a press secretary on the Hill. "I am originally from Connecticut and started my career in the state legislature."

That's where she met the congressman she ended up working for. "I was already in DC and he remembered I worked on the communications team in his State Legislative Caucus."

The opportunity to work on congressional initiatives didn't come easy for Beth. It took applying to countless random political jobs, getting turned down, moving to the state office to work for a senator, and then to another DC job before she got her big break. "A lot of hits and misses!"

The work was high-octane. A lot of dashing through corridors from offices to hearings, and hearings to meetings. "It was insane," says Beth. "I was hardly at my desk and would constantly fire myself up with coffee, gum, and a brownie. But most of us had a lofty sense that we were making a difference." Proof that sugar and a sense of purpose can jet fuel anything.

Beth was dedicated to her career in politics because she was passionate about supporting the people of her state. Some of her favorite memories happened off the Hill at events back home where she would hear directly from constituents about local issues and concerns.

This monthly district recess is intended to keep politicians in touch with their home communities and better frame the work happening in Washington.

"You can get too entrenched in the ivory tower of the Hill and lose touch if you are not careful," she adds. Wary of falling into this trap herself herself, Beth kept her interest in public service alive through grassroots work.

She had an opportunity to volunteer at Arcadia Farm in Alexandria, VA. More interested in policy than politics, Beth sought to make a dent in the issue of food deserts – pockets of the country surrounded by wealthy communities laden with grocery stores and fresh food markets, but excluded from the bounty.

Working with the earth in close knit circles was enlivening. "The thought that what I harvested in the morning would be sold a few hours later in a Washington, D.C. food desert, and make its final stop in someone's kitchen all in the same day was incredible."

Beth's experience reminds us that, in order to evolve into a real contribution, our work must take on many forms, have many tempos and touchpoints, and consist of both successful and failed attempts in the long and arduous process of reaching a summit.

It must be loyal to our vision of how we are uniquely positioned to make a difference.

You can find Beth – changemaker, writer, farmer, and friend – on her website, Write Committed.