Al Gore: A Long Journey

What happened to Al Gore in late 2000 might have destroyed a lesser person.
An incumbent vice president losing an election many people thought he was destined to win. Being denied the presidency of the United States, even though he received the most votes.
Having the job he sought his entire adult life slip through his fingers because of a few hundred disputed ballots in a state controlled by his opponent’s brother.
A heart-wrenching, frustrating defeat. Painfully dragged out for more than a month. All in the harsh glare of a public spotlight.
Yes, it might have crushed most people. Derailed forever their hope, their desire, their enthusiasm.
That didn’t happen to Al Gore. It took awhile, but the man from Tennessee used that defeat as a springboard -- launching into a campaign that resulted in the announcement today that he will share the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize with a United Nations panel for their work in making the world aware of the dangers of global climate change.
You don’t have to like Al Gore to admire what he’s done. You don’t have to agree with his politics or his environmental stances. You don’t even have to concur with the Nobel committee’s decision to appreciate what he’s achieved.
Al Gore’s journey the past seven years is a travel log of inspiration. It’s a tale of perseverance. Of dedication.
It serves as a model for Baby Boomers who have entered the second half of their life. After all, he is one of us. A member of our generation who has risen from some pretty thick ashes. Without whining. Without complaining.
He has climbed to a new pinnacle. With dignity. With purpose. With some humor and with his eyes set on a loftier goal.
This was not an easy journey. When Al Gore finally conceded the 2000 election, he told the American public, “It is time for me to go.”
He did disappear. For a year or two, he faltered. He gained weight. He grew a scraggly beard. Like many of us in our 50s, he was lost. He didn’t know where to turn. What to grasp for, if anything.
But then he found his footing. He rediscovered a calling. One he had trumpeted when he was younger. A passion he had put aside when the ambition of his 40s ignited his ego.
Al Gore returned to his environmental roots. He began speaking about the changes happening to the Earth. Melting ice caps. Warming oceans. A disappearing ozone layer.
He put together a slide show. He hit the road. He not only told people what was happening but why they should care and what they could do about it.
When 2004 rolled along, Gore resisted temptation. He shoved aside the easily accessible emotions of jealously and revenge. He spared the country a destructive rematch of the 2000 campaign. He opted not to run again. He gave up his quest for the highest office in the land. He did so for the right reasons. And that decision set him free.
The chains that had restricted Gore were broken. You could see it in the way he talked. The way he reacted. He went on “Saturday Night Live” and made fun of himself. His interviews were still stiff, but there was a purity to them.
In 2006, the documentary “An Inconvenient Truth” was released. It basically was Al Gore’s slide show on film. It struck a nerve. It brought concerns that were bubbling below the surface up to the forefront of public debate.
In February, the movie won an Oscar. In September, Gore picked up an Emmy for his Internet-based network, Current TV. And, on Oct. 12, 2007, Gore and the United Nation’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change were honored with the Nobel Peace Prize. He’s the first American to win that award since former president Jimmy Carter in 2002.
Today was a day Al Gore certainly relished. However, he did not gloat. Gore didn’t even appear publicly until eight hours after the announcement. When he did, he didn’t brag about himself. He spoke about his mission and his plans to donate his half of the $1.5 million prize money to an environmental organization.
“We face a true planetary emergency,” he said. “The climate crisis is not a political issue, it is a moral and spiritual challenge to all of humanity.”
Some speculate Gore will catapult from the Nobel award into the 2008 presidential race. That is unlikely to happen. There is no need for this lifelong politician to seek the White House. He’s been there and done that. He’s found a new quest.
For, Al Gore is still on his journey. A long one, to be sure. One that Baby Boomers can emulate. One that demonstrates how a member of an older generation can touch people of all ages. How a person can have an impact in a way they didn’t anticipate. Inspire others by using their experience, knowledge and long-lost passion.
Mostly, it shows how a person can overcome the biggest of disappointments. How someone can tumble to the bottom of a mountain, then pick themselves up and find another peak to climb.
“This is just the beginning,” Gore told reporters today.
It can be for all of us. Our generation still has 10,000 productive days ahead of us. Let’s reach for the heights obtained by our fellow Baby Boomer – the one holding the Nobel Peace Prize.