Dear Addison
By Rep. Dusty Johnson
Dear Addison,
I got your letter and I wanted to thank you for the invite to your high school grad party. I’m going to try my best to make it.
I really appreciated what you had to say – and I’m encouraged that kids like you are the future of our country. Graduating from high school is a huge step and you should feel proud. As you embark on adulthood, you’ll have the freedom to pursue your dreams, whether that’s going to a four-year university or a technical trade school, starting your own business or working random jobs until you figure out what you want to do – you have that freedom.
You mentioned in your letter that you want to run for office one day. I hope you do. We need young people like you to bring fresh ideas to Congress. Now I’m only forty-two so I wouldn’t consider myself old, but I’m sure I have a lot to learn from you. We may not agree on everything, but you’ve experienced things I never will – social media did not exist when I was in high school, dating did not involve swiping right, and self-driving cars were something we saw in the movies, not in real life.
My point is, our world is changing rapidly and many of these new changes bring extra challenges. A lot of folks think that throwing more money at our problems will fix them, I don’t agree with that. It’s going to take new ideas and new thinking to break the status quo we’ve seen in Washington for decades. That’s why I ran for office and if you ever run, hopefully you’ll keep that in mind.
We’re living in a viral world where substance and sound ideas are set aside for appearance and popularity. I want to offer you some big brotherly advice as you enter this new stage of life post-grad. First, doing the easy thing will always be just that, easy. So, choose the road less traveled. People will respect you for it. Second, be kind. People will tell you that bringing down others or acting tough will get you ahead, but it doesn’t have to be that way. Collaborate with others instead. Working together will get you much further. And third, work hard and be persistent. You’ll hear no a lot more than you hear yes throughout life. Don’t let it stop you. There is always a solution to a problem, you just have to be willing to find it.
I’m looking forward to seeing your name on the ballot one day. Until then, congratulations on your graduation.
Best,
Dusty
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