Something happened last night. Something bigger than you can understand, but I want to put in writing my take on a small piece of the history that you were part of – even though you are too small to realize it.
We watched coverage of the events on television, and I’ll apologize now for not having given you my full and undivided attention. Josie – you probably won’t remember watching the colors of the night, red and blue, on the screen, and seeing the states across our country fill in with those colors. You are 3, and you wanted to break everything into “good guys vs. bad guys” or “mean and nice.” And you probably won’t remember that Mommy was sad… not because of what was on t.v., but that Daddy wasn’t there to watch it with us. He was traveling for work, so Mommy had to settle for talking to him on the phone. It wasn’t the same, and I will always regret that Daddy was in Texas (of all places) while history of this magnitude was being made. Eve – you won’t remember laughing at Mommy as I cheered when the color I was pulling for popped up on the screen, and you would yell, “Again!” You can thank the people of the United States for fulfilling your wish, as Mommy had a lot more cheering to do before the night was over.
A Man named Barack Obama became both the 44th and the 1st, all in one night. He will be our nation’s forty-fourth president, which, in and of itself, is not all that historic. It was time, and someone needed to be the next president. But what is historic is the fact that he will be our nation’s first African-American president. And if events hadn’t unfolded the way they did, we would have seen ballots this election year with America’s first woman presidential candidate. So either way, big changes and big choices for America. We heard a lot of talk this election year. Much of it, I’ll admit, bores me to tears, and annoys me beyond belief. But what will hold up in my memory from this year are some of the words which resounded over and over again: Change. Hope. Country First. Maverick. Make sure you guys look up that last one along with “Tina Fey” and “SNL.” It may not mean much to you, but trust me- it was comedy gold in 2008.
I’m not going to turn this into a political platform on which to launch my views and beliefs to the world. I’m not that kind of person. I believe what I believe, and I firmly respect the right of every human being to believe what they believe, whether it differs from my own view or not. I may disagree with many of the beliefs and views of those around me, even family and friends, but you will never hear your mommy in a heated argument trying to persuade someone that what they believe is wrong. There are plenty of others out there who derive pleasure from that task; I honestly don’t see the point.
When you are old enough to want to do the research, there will be mountains of material available for you to read and listen to in order to get the facts behind what the candidates in the presidential race of 2008 championed for. And I hope to instill in each of you the ability to listen, and read, and form your own opinions. You can learn a lot by just listening and watching. There’s a whole lot of B.S. out there; the trick is learning to filter through it to get to the good stuff. And if you want to be one of those who speaks their minds and tries to persuade others, then I will support you – as long as you speak the truth. And if you want to sit back with me and just take it all in – I’ll be there for that, too.
One of the things that I take away from this election, and I think that no matter which side of the fence you sit on, you’d have to agree that what we witnessed last night and the impact it had throughout the world, was truly astounding. Now we wait to see the effects of the impact. Many times elections are, unfortunately, about choosing the “lesser of two evils.” This election didn’t feel that way to me. We had to choose between two very different candidates with very persuading arguments. Maybe I was more invested in the election this year, because I’m a mother now and the choices we make will affect you, Josie and Eve. I hope and pray that America has chosen wisely for you and your future.
Love,
Mommy
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