Yesterday my roommate and I drove down to the train station to cast our ballots. For us, this was our "First Election" (it says so on my calendar) and luckily there wasn't a line; apparently they had all dissipated after the morning rush.
It was only a minute, but during that time I felt incredibly awake. Seeing Barack Obama and Joe Biden at the top of the ballot felt incredibly surreal. The time was finally there to vote!
Afterward, Jessica and I soaked in it. There was truly a sense of elation that came from that experience.
I have always thought that voting was important, but because I was previously underage and therefore not allowed to, I didn't quite understand how important. I do now.
Last night we started keeping watch on everything via the internet. Then I had to go do some radio station (www.wvcw.org) stuff and I ended up at Empire watching MSNBC on a projector above a bar. I cannot tell you how nervous I was. My body would not stop moving and Landis (who was with me) kept going on about what was "bothering me." Nothing was bothering me except the thought of the possiblity of McCain being president.
Unfortuneately around ten I had to head to Bagel Czar to some metal show to promote WVCW, but I really didn't do that and no one came anyway. Everyone was at a viewing party of some sort, of course! We were all checking CNN.com every five seconds. And at eleven I got a text from AJ, the first of exchanges between me and everyone over the Obama/Biden win!
At this poinst I was hysterical. I literally jumped up and down for about fifteen minutes. Everyone poured into the streets around campus. There were fireworks, carhorns, screaming, hugging, kissing, high fives, every form of introduction and affection could be seen. People expanded down Broad Street for about six to eight blocks. Intersections were closed down. Cops were everywhere (though, not really doing anything exceptin directing traffic).
Last night the only feelings present were those of love, beauty and unity. Never before have I experienced those feelings to that degree and with so many people.
America is forever changed by this election, and if last night was any indeication of the direction it's going, these next four years are going to be some of the most influential in histroy - not just for our government and country, but for our csociety and culture. Obama has sparked a tiny flame in us all to be better people, and that's change we can believe in.
2 comments:
Amanda...when nothing changes in this country (and I hope I'm wrong), please come back to this post, and reflect on it.
Mr. Brann, read the last paragraph again.
Things are already changing. People's attitudes and feelings for their fellow human-beings are changing. That may not be the type of change he campaigned on, but it's enough for me.
And at this point Bush has created such a huge mess, it'll take a while to clean it up, so Obama won't really be able to start doing anything until the end of his first term.
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