AWESOME.

I get the same question A LOT after a debate tournaments. 

"So what was your favorite part about the tournament?"

Every tournament is good in its own special way. There were some memorable parts at Lincoln. Different memories at Omaha. So of course there were other ones at Regionals 2013. Every tournament is different. Sometimes there is some bad along with the good. 

Regionals 2013 was a mixture of good and bad. 

 Most of the time, it's hard to pick just ONE part of the tournament that was my favorite.

But when someone asks me what my favorite part of Regionals 2013 was, I can answer with no hesitation. 

Duo Awards. 

You have the Wenzel's from Minnesota. The Ojeda's from Nebraska. The Bell's from Kansas. The Stewart's from Minnesota. 

Imagine us lined up against the side wall with our arms linked. ((because we all are really the best of friends)) I think we were all hoping that the eight of us would end up as the top four. So that was exciting. After a moment of suspense... it was announced that 4th place and up were all qualified for Nationals. The excitement that all eight of us had for each other was amazing. There were hugs and laughter and huge smiles in our small group. Just to know that there was a caring kind of support and genuine happiness for the other person was... so powerful and encouraging. At that moment, after our group hug, I decided that I really didn't care who was going to get what place. Knowing that I had the privilege and honor to stand up on that stage with these seven other competitors (more importantly, friends), who are SUCH an encouragement and inspiration to me, was the most meaningful award of all. It was a blessing.

So when people ask me what my favorite part of Regionals 2013 is, I simply say, "Duo Awards with Wenzels, Bells, and Stewarts. That was AWESOME."