In One Fatal Swoop, Cassidy Hutchinson Proves America's Youth Are Not To Be Dismissed

The summer of 2022 is sweltering--and not merely because of the weather. Cassidy Hutchinson made quite a few powerful people in our great Democracy bust into frantic sweats with her testimony about January 6 and me thinks a severe heat rash is soon to follow. In one fatal swoop, Ms. Hutchinson's witness testimony to the House select committee's investigation made her a young American hero to many people for being the first to bravely tell the "behind the scenes" events in the White House that fateful day when many men, significantly older than her, continue to hide and seek (maybe they are just too busy wiping ketchup off a wall somewhere in Florida).

Perhaps it was the ignorance of her youth, which can sometimes bring a blind eye to the ramifications of decisions, that helped her to come forward. But I don't think so...she is surely surrounded by sound counsel (I hope) that would help her deeply understand what this meant for her. In addition, she was a 24 year old who worked elbow-length next to those in ultimate charge of the White House. I'm sure it would be pretty hard to cling to your naivete in such a cut-throat and self-serving environment.

No...it wasn't the ignorance of her youth that made her the star witness of the hearings.

It was the spirit of her youth.

Allow me to backtrack. I feel as if I constantly hear about how people are scared of the future because of our youth. The idea that Gen Y (Millennials) and Gen Z are: lazy, entitled, social media obsessed, insert-given-negative-adjective. And there may be aspects of truth to this for SOME of them--after all, it is hard to be surrounded by this now instant-gratification age we live in and escape unscathed!--but there is a spirit of youth that cannot be dismissed, discounted, or undervalued.

Youth are not tainted (yet...but hopefully never!) by the hard knocks of life. As one progresses in life and more challenges, heartbreaks, and disappointments come, it can require a concerted effort to remain free from bitterness and negativity. Many youth are free from that...the world is a complete oyster, full of adventure. They also challenge the status quo. Many times, they willingly and bravely deviate from the path of the ordinary to do the extraordinary. They have the energy, heart, and will to do so. Ohhhh it's a world of possibilities!!! Why do some some of us lose that as we get older?!?!?!

While I have been impacted greatly by a wide range of people, in my late thirties I was profoundly changed by a group of people in their early to mid twenties. They were everything I previously described. Also visionary. Fearless (or shall I say, doing things DESPITE the fear). Savvy. Intelligent. Paving new paths outside of the norm. Creative. Effecting people around them in profound ways. I am sad to say, even in my younger years, many of these things alluded me. But it woke me up to the possibilities of my OWN life. It was such a beautiful thing to experience and changed my mindset in long term.

The spirit of youth is available to everyone.

I remember I read once that Prince surrounded himself on purpose with young people because of their mindset. He even famously did not count his birthdays--not just because of his religion, but he knew age was just a number. It was the SPIRIT of youth that he was concerned with.

Ms. Hutchinson is a mere reminder that youth is not to be dismissed...in others or ourselves.

Dedicated to Dana Williams, Desmond "Tru Def" Williams, Trevoy Pointer, Julie Unger, and Dominic Fondren