Commitment

I am rambunctious. I work to go to the deeper issues. The issues that prevent the whole harbor from moving skyward.

Many of you may know, but I am a fan of the saying "A rising tide lifts all ships."

Being at another conference, I am again enriched with the idea that there are those out there that take pride in what they do, and that they are helping others live the lives they want to. But there is still something missing.

What is it about enthusiasm that brings out a sense of hope in people? Is the working world really devoid of that many people who take their work seriously and produce a quality product for time invested? Are there really not that many passionate people out there?

I always knew being passionate was a good trait, but every time I speak somewhere, it seems as though people are really, really taken aback by my commitment to my work and my task. I know that the non-profit world moves slowly, but has the current of innovation and investment really slowed to a sludge?

I like to shake things up. I like to get at the deeper issues. Past the surface level celebrations, and into the core problems of why we need to reexamine and begin to shift the underlying paradigm behind why these issues exist in the first place.


Example:

So many people at this conference I'm attending simply act like the fact that the car-centric planning of suburbs and different communities is a solid, concrete fact and something we must deal with.

I say let's trash the car-centric view, and not put up with having to lament in the fact the public cannot simply walk to many of their community services. Let's build new communities and infrastructure to combat these core issues. We can promote community health, personal health, and a better landscape and future for all! (Not to mention the economic benefits of saving on transportation costs, and the return on investment for new businesses in pedestrian corridors!)


Or hell, let's not even trash the car-centric view! I believe the automobile is an essential part of American culture as much as any historian, but it's time we relegate it to a new spot among our everyday lives.

Let's use the automobile to go on personal exploration trips. The long haul places it was designed to conquer back in the 50's and 60's. The automobile is for personal discovery and enjoyment, not a simple, throw-away object to use to get back and forth from somewhere in a mundane cycle. Put that on transit operators and our sidewalks!*


This all leads me to my experience at the Mobility Management conference over the beginning of this week. It strikes me that I keep getting praised for "all the work that I've done" over the past year and a half, and that I have "made so much progress" with where I'm going and what I've been doing. I guess I don't quite get it.

I am not trying to be humble here. I know I've worked in great lengths and capacities to get to where I've gotten. I'm just surprised that others have taken so much notice. I genuinely do not understand why I have gotten so much praise and respect for something that I just consider a job well done that any entry level person could have done. I mean, VISTA isn't necessarily "entry level" skills, but it is a unique work style, and not very conducive to productivity and product completion.


I also don't quite get the questioning of why I am excited about developments that don't affect me. I talk about developments around transportation for seniors and people with disabilities as a little kid would talk about ice cream. I'm so excited they are happening. And then people ask "Well why are you excited? You're not old!"

I mean, come on people. It's not about me.

I've been thinking of what to do if I were to give a public comment at a C-Tran board meeting. I know doing so is very risky because of my VISTA position, and I do not want to mess that up. But if I were to do so, it would go along the lines of this:


I am Nick Ford, citizen and regular rider of C-Tran. I come to you today just to share a couple of ideas around transit and the future of your agency.

I am privileged enough to drive my car to work back and forth from work everyday, able enough to freely and easily move about, young enough to run and remember systems, and overall, would, in any other case, not need the transit system. Yet I choose to ride. Why?

I gripe about the inefficiencies and the backlogs. I complain about the comfort of the ride and the poor setup of our modern day dwellings and systems. But all that does not matter.

At a meeting recently I was asked as to why I was excited for an Honored Citizen All-Zone Day Pass. "You're not old!" someone exclaimed. See? That's why I ride transit.

I ride transit, because every time I do, it's a vote of confidence. One more rider to boost the numbers for access. One more boost to make sure that those without can.

That's the thing. It's not ABOUT ME. It's about EVERYONE. It's making sure that young family has a way to take their baby to the doctor. It's about that person in the wheelchair having a way to go to the park and enjoy a picnic on the grass. It's about the grandmother and grandfather being able to get fresh groceries to stay healthy.

See? You and I both have the privilege to do all of these things on our own, without needing assistance. But they do not. And it's not like I'm even playing them up to be inspirational stories or anything. I am looking out for their needs as human beings!

We need a system that is better. We need a system that is good. We need to bring ALL people into the transit system to ensure that folks who NEED the service get a better quality of service. We need not be selective in who the system helps. We advertise for all. We get people around, no matter their need.

So let's start planning, building, and living like it.