By Jennifer Huard
For the Journal
If you were stranded on a desert island, what three songs would you want with you? What's the one life experience you want a do-over on? If your company gave one-year paid sabbaticals, what would you do for that year?
These questions cut right to the chase and give glimpses into who people are at their core, what their values are and given the opportunity, what choices they would make.
On Monday, Gov. Bill Richardson held his first-ever open office hours in Rio Rancho.
Many states offer "Ask the Governor" sessions, and I was not about to pass up this opportunity to ask the perfect question that would give me an honest answer and some true insight into this one-time presidential candidate.
I arrived a half an hour before closing and was told there had been approximately 67 groups of people before me and the meetings were now closed. After a little whining and smiling, the gatekeeper told me the governor could squeeze me in and to quickly write down my question and driver's license number on the form.
Although I had my economic development question well rehearsed and ready to go, I figured why waste my one shot on a question he was sure to have already heard and one for which he had a well-rehearsed answer.
No, I wanted to delve deeper and ask something on a more personal level. And with only five minutes, I wasn't going to waste his time or mine on a "boxers or briefs" query, either.
My name was called and I was ushered into the hot seat opposite Gov. Richardson.
Even though it was obvious the governor's back was giving him discomfort, he looked dashing. The Grizzly Adams beard was trimmed down to a handsome goatee. Not being one who has ever liked facial hair on men, I have to make an exception. I could see this man playing opposite Al Pacino in a New York detective thriller or better yet anchoring the nightly news so we could look at him everyday— hubba, hubba.
"Mr. Governor," I posed, "if your house was on fire and everyone was already safely outside, and you were given the chance to go back and get something, what would it be?"
I could tell he wasn't expecting this kind of a question but welcomed the thought-provoking query. Not until I reassured him that in this hypothetical situation all people and pets were safely outside would he consider his answer.
"First," he said, "I would save my personal letters from my mother and father and from my wife's family. Second, I would probably get my collection of very old historical documents; letters written by Presidents Washington and Lincoln that I have on my wall."
"And lastly, I think I would save our collection of religious crosses, we're Catholic you know. One of our crucifixes was blessed by Pope John XXIII."
His answers were not rehearsed politico sound bites replying to an all-too-familiar question. But based on my question, his responses were more from the heart and showed another side of our governor that we rarely see.
"But you are sure the cats got out?" he persisted. "Because my wife would kill me if I didn't save the cats."
Quote of the Week: "I like to see a man proud of the place in which he lives. I like to see a man live so that his place will be proud of him."— Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865).
Jennifer Huard's column appears each Thursday in the Rio Rancho Journal. She welcomes your emails at jhuard@abqjournal.com.
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