Personal Narrative: My Failure Of Returning To The Senate

Taking the subway to the Hart Senate building from the United States Capital, I thought to myself “What am I going to say to Senator Nelson to bring him to the Senate Chamber.” I never in my life had to direct nor influence a person of such authority that they had to perform a duty, but that quickly changed during a near midnight Senate session this past summer. On the night of an important vote, the Senators started to file in slowly to the Senate Chamber. Even though most Senators did not vote until after the time ran out, Senator Nelson, the Senator who sponsored me to be a Senate Page, was the only Senator not present. The Secretary of the Minority tried to reach his office but got no response. With no options left, the Secretary of the Minority asked me to locate the Senator and direct him to the chamber. Out of all the Pages on the Senate Floor, I had to find a way to locate, direct, and escort a senior member of the United States Senate. Approaching his office, I opened the main doors and discovered that his interns had left for the night, failing to redirect the phone lines.

Returning to the Senate Floor without the Senator, I could have looked at this moment as a failure, but for me, it was a defining moment in my transition to adulthood. My failure was my accomplish. As a transitioning adult, I realized that failure may occur. I might have failed in bringing the Senator to the floor, but I succeeded in approaching the situation with a capable, practical, and competent demeanor. Within the political sphere of South Florida, being a United States Senate Page is very rare, but on that night, I was trusted with the task of being mature enough to engage in a conversation with a respected member of the United States Senate. I know that one moment will not automatically make me an adult, but that night started my path towards