Day 2

Day 2
Campaigning is more than just getting your name on the list and going around shaking hands. first of all, it is a strategy game. assuming that everyone involved is on equal grounds, it is a matter of skills and wit to outsmart your opponent. understand the place where you're contesting; the demographics, the needs and the prevailing issues. and then, build rapport.

I found out that there are alot of people behind the scene that do not get the publicity as the candidates. these included the people who designed the banners, posters, or brochures, put them together, get the banners hanged, distributed the brochures, wrote the letters to apply for permits, coordinated the logistics, drove the vehicles that ferried the candidates, and the list goes on.

Those with more resources probably could afford to give some monetary allowances to the workers, but those lacking are relying totally on kind souls who volunteered for the sake of idealism and change. these are the admirable individuals. i come into contact with one of them in my course of work. i found out that he's an insurance agent who decided to put on hold his insurance business for two weeks so he could be the campaign manager for one of the candidates. he's in his late 20s with relatively stable income but definitely not lavish. he paid on his own all the expenses incurred during this campaigning period - petrol, toll, meals and phone bills. he wakes up in the wee morning and only gets home late at night. when we asked him what was his biggest challenge, he said was to make his girlfriend of seven years to understand why he's putting so much time, effort and money into this. he explained that he wanted to play his role, although not the major one, to initiate change in this country. idealistic, yes, humane, definitely.

How many of us who complaint so much in our daily lives bother to initiate change? how many of us at our workplace, struggling with the environment, try to do things differently? how many of us are brave enough to stand up for our beliefs, principles and values? when the moment arrives, how many of us take the call?

This person, regardless whether his pursuit is right or wrong (is there such a thing in the first place??), has demostrated that he's willing to forsake his time, which he could use to sell more policies, his effort, which he could shower on his girlfriend/family/friends instead, and his money, which he could spend it in so many other ways, on something that he believes in and for that, i salute him for his dedication and passion!