2020 Vision | Seeing Each Other As Never Before

By Sadie Hess

Changing Seasons

I love changing seasons.  I love soup in the winter and salad in the summer.  I love tidying in spring and organizing in fall.  Such a lovely rhythm to it all.  But if you know me, you must know that my favorite season is the beginning of the year!  Oh, how I love the possibility of new things and the expectation as a whole year lies before you.  I am provoked by our theme this year: 2020 Vision: Seeing each other as never before.

A raw and primal emotion: the desire to be seen, and even deeper, to be known.  We have an innate longing for the world to see us and accept us for who we are and what we contribute.  Regardless of disability, we wait to be unwrapped like a gift.

Getting to be Human

Recently, I have been amazed by the number of CompassLovesU lunches!  An individual uses their hard earned CompCoins to hang out with Eric and I.  We go out for an hour or so and just be “human”.  We talk about who we are and some of our experiences.  I get to see Dee or Roy or Laura in a new way.  I see how they sleep away from their home or how they are embarking on a new adventure in love.  I see how they blend their home/work life balance.  I see how they love clients unconditionally.  We share a meal and I see them and know them a little better.

I hope they see me too.  I hope they see I don’t have all the answers.  I doubt, I fret, I question like anyone else.  Eric and I fight, and we make up, like every other couple (although most couples probably don’t fight about Compass as much as we do! 😄 ).  We have our moments of deep pain and regret, as well as mountain top experiences.  We worry about our kids and we love to talk about our hobbies.

Seeing Each Other

At a core level, we all share the same desire:to be seen and valued for who we are, not just our “job” at Compass.  Seeing each other is the first step in knowing each other.  And knowing each other builds our community while strengthening our personal identity.  This year, I truly hope you see and are seen.  People are all around you who are beautiful inside and out.  Look and you will see the rainbow that is our community.