The Leen

What an historic day! We turned the TV on tonight in time to see both candidates’ speeches. I was very glad we caught both of them. While they were speaking, I found myself thinking that McCain was a truly classy loser and that Obama has a really good speechwriter. (I loved the part where he thanked his wife. I hope he’s sincere.)

There’s not a whole lot I’m going to say about how I feel about the results. I play my political cards pretty close to my chest, because I really don’t want to debate about politics with people. It’s not something I care about enough to have relational conflict over.

That said, I’m definitely interested to see what the next four years will bring for our country, good or bad.

One thing I’ve enjoyed about today is — and this sounds kind of crazy — watching everyone’s Facebook statuses, and how varied they all are in terms of their support of the different candidates. The variation in people’s opinions is fascinating to me, especially among groups of people where I’d expect them to feel differently than they do.

For instance, it’s been surprising how many people I know from Christian environments have declared themselves as being Obama supporters. I’m just so used to people from Christian contexts being all about whatever Republican candidate is running that it’s been a surprise to me how many are behind Obama. It’s eye-opening, for sure. I’m just glad so many people voted! It’s an important responsibility we have as citizens of this country. It’s nice to see people taking that responsibility seriously for a change.

Brett and I sat down on Sunday night and spent over two hours reading through the voter’s pamphlet, discussing the issues and candidates, and then voting together. It was a very enlightening experience for both of us. I enjoyed spending the time with him, and I enjoyed talking with him about things we’d probably never discuss otherwise.

As much as it was nice to take our time voting and to really talk through the issues and candidates as we did so, I do miss actually physically going to the polls. I remember, as a child, going with my parents. I remember that the occasion was treated with solemnity and seriousness. And I remember looking forward, with great anticipation, to the day when I, too, could vote.

I want Elanor to have the same desire. So maybe I’ll change back from absentee status to where I have to go to the polls. At the very least, that means I’ll get an “I voted!” sticker!