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Dazzled by "Good Morning America"

September 30, 2008 1:39 PM

ABC News On Campus UNC bureau chief Carly Swain blogs:

As a 22-year-old senior in college, I'd like to think that I've matured a bit since second grade. That seems like a reasonable assumption, doesn't it? I've opted for laces rather than Velcro on my tennis shoes. So how is it possible to revert a nearly grown-up lady back into an 8-year-old? In my case it involves walking onto the set of "Good Morning America."

Being on the "GMA" set was a personal highlight for me during the fall 2008 ABC News On Campus Bureau summit. After a quick tour and a brief meet-and-greet with Diane Sawyer and Robin Roberts, I calmly walked back into the green room as a 22-year-old. Then the door to the green room shut, and I lost about 12 years. Have you ever seen that look on a child's face when she wakes up on Christmas morning to see bites out of the cookies she'd left for Santa? I was dazzled but not by the cameras or the idea of television. It was more the realization that I had seen the top of the mountain I want to climb.

"GMA" is the program I recall my mom having on while we packed my backpack and lunchbox. When I'm home on holidays, we still watch it together, only now we watch with mugs of steaming coffee, not a Yoo-Hoo or a juice box. There is such a distinct energy in that work. Both camaraderie and the live TV thrill is so tangible. At the "GMA" set I stood next to people I've never met in my life, watching Emeril BAM! his way to a great dinner, and thinking that no matter everyone's differences everyone will have this common experience. By starting your day with someone else, there is the chance that you will see something in a new way.

Visiting "GMA" reminded me of some of the reasonsI enjoy making and watching morning television so much. It is so easy to get swept away in the day-to-day tasks and checklists that we make for ourselves. But during this trip, I grasped a better understanding of how important it is to dream, no matter how busy you are.