We started out with a small group of hikers.But as the word spread，the number of participants increased.One day on campus，I met a woman in a wheelchair and we started talking.Her name was Grace.I asked her if she had ever been to the top of the mountain.She said she hadn’t.I told her that my buddies and I would carry her if she were up for it.Grace accepted the offer.The next time we went up the mountain，we all took turns grabbing a corner of her chair as we carried her 1.7 miles to the top.
This was probably one of the most magical and deeply meaningful things I did in college.By the end，we had over seventy-five people climbing the mountain on Thursdays，including Grace.All of us who participated felt like we were part of something much bigger than we were.We were building a community and it felt great.
With the student body elections approaching，my friends from the mountain encouraged me to run for president.So I did.I knew I could make a difference with a campaign team of seventy-five people rallying around me，no one was surprised that I had won the election.
The first thing I did as president was hang a sign outside the Associated Students office that read，“Under New Management！”I was proud of my accomplishment to say the least.Most of my life as a youth was spent in the principal’s office for being in trouble and this was one of the few times I had actually achieved bona fide respect and appreciation from my peers.
They say absolute power corrupts absolutely.It sure did in my case.I letall the power go to my head.My ego，my arrogance and my pride were out of control.I began speaking down to people，demanding they listen to me because I thought I knew what was best.My friends and supporters tried to communicate to me that I had changed，that I was abusing my position，but I wasn’t listening.
It wasn’t long before the very people who had believed in my presidency began to turn against me.But I still wasn’t paying attention.I took my obsession with power to such an extreme.A public conflict with the female vice president opened the floodgates for others who were upset with me.It became a blood bath.What started out as a wonderfully enriching experience，or so I thought，suddenly turned into one of my worst nightmares.“Zap the Sap！”posters would soon be everywhere on campus.