In February, I was chosen as an Adult Delegate to the Girl Scouts 52nd National Convention. Nine months later, here I am in Houston, Texas wrapping up the first day of my very first convention! With all the excitement I am sure to experience over the next three days, I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to share convention with all of you via a few daily blog posts.
Thanks to my lovely Berkeley midterm schedule, I actually arrived in Houston a day later than everyone else from my council. Not to mention the fact that I missed my flight this morning, so I didn’t actually make it to the convention center until halfway through the opening ceremonies. Perhaps the best part of my hectic day was seeing the sign at the airport welcoming the Girl Scouts to the convention – I wish I had taken a photo!
Standing in the convention room for the first time left me in awe. Imagine a gigantic, beautifully-decorated room filled with thousands of Girl Scouts dressed head to toe in uniform. Sounds wonderful, right? Congregating with thousands of women whom love Girl Scouting as much as I do: what could be better? Absolutely nothing.
During the opening ceremonies tonight, I feel as if my eyes swelled with tears every few minutes. Being in these types of situations never fails to renew my love and admiration for Scouting. It reminds me why I push myself to do all that I do and why the Girl Scout Law has always driven me to be the best that I can I be. I’m absolutely positive that I will leave this weekend with stories galore and a sense of happiness and satisfaction that will envelope me for an entire month. From singing Girl Scout camp songs with Katie Couric, to beginning Delegate training, I can tell that this convention is going to be one to remember!
Tomorrow, I’ll be getting up bright and early to head back to the convention center for an entire day of trainings and meetings before the National Council Session starts. I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about and conferring with constituents about the policies we’ll be voting on, and I definitely think I’m informed and ready to make the best decision for our council.
On a side note, the hotel I’m staying in – which is incredible, by the way – has absolutely no free WiFi (someone explain THAT to me), so it may be a struggle for me to post every day during the convention. I also have only brought my iPad with me, so I won’t be able to upload any photos until I get home.
At any rate, happy 100th anniversary, Girl Scouts! Juliette Low would be proud, of not only how far we have come, but how far we will continue to go.
