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Every Little Thing by April Jeppson

Through a series of what I consider divine events, I have found myself running our local Youth in Government delegation this year. This unique program comprises teens who immerse themselves in experiential civic engagement, debate issues and even propose legislation. Last January over 1,400 youth from around Minnesota gathered at the state capitol to practice everything they had learned and prepared for.

Thanks to Dennis Dieser, our community has a long history of being active in YIG. The first time I heard him speak about the program, I noticed the change in his expression as he lit up. I could tell how much Youth in Government meant to him, and I knew I’d have his support as we tried to revive the program.

This week I had the pleasure of listening to one of his former participants talk about their time in Youth in Government. Listening to him talk about his experiences made me smile. It reminded me of all the good memories I had from when I was in high school. I know there are a lot of people who didn’t care for their high school experiences, but I’m not one of them. I made the most of every opportunity presented to me.

If there was a club or activity, I joined it. If they needed someone to step up and run it, I willingly volunteered. Looking back, I was usually heading into school early for jazz band, and each day I would stay late for some sport or even play practice. I remember going in on a Saturday to finish up some spreads for the yearbook and my mom stopping by to bring me lunch. I even went to yearbook camp — yes that’s a real thing and it’s glorious!

I was hoping this man would share how much fun the January conference was. I was hoping he would soften their nerves so they could look forward to meeting other like-minded youth. I was hoping that hearing information from an outside source would help it sink in. You know how if your mom tells you something, you may ignore it, but if your cool aunt gives you the same advice, you’re all ears? Yeah, I needed to call in the troops.

He did everything I hoped, but I was not prepared for the level of passion and excitement that he was going to bring to our space. He shared how this program changed his life for the better. He talked about all the things that have happened since, because of these experiences. At one point his eyes welled up with tears because his experiences meant that much to him. As I scanned the room,

I could tell his words were resonating with these youth.

Such a beautiful thing to witness one person’s passion generates excitement into another. It was like watching him pass a torch for this new generation to carry. My daughter is in the program, so the cool aunt analogy was used for good reason. Later that night I asked her what she thought of our guest speaker. She said that this was the first time that she was genuinely excited. She back peddled a little so as to not hurt my feelings, but it was OK, I understood exactly what she meant.

My kids may never geek out over magazine layouts or photo editing and I’ve come to realize that it’s OK. Thanks to people like Robert sharing his story, my children can learn about and discover their own passions. So please, if you have a hobby or interest or anything that makes your eyes light up when you talk about it… share it with the world. The world needs more unabashedly passionate people.

Albert Lean April Jeppson is a wife, mom, coach and encourager of dreams. Her column appears every Saturday.