Election Day - HOPE!!

This morning I stood in line for 2 hours to vote. Two whole hours! Plus, I arrived at my polling place at 6 am. 6 AM! If you knew the depths of my impatience and my general disdain for getting up early in the morning for anything, you would understand how major this is. I stood in queue for an interminable length at that god-awful time of morning so that I could be a part of something I believe in, voting in general and voting in this election specifically. And the most amazing thing that happened after all of this is that I went in the booth and cast my ballot for a black man. An African American is actually a viable option in this election for President of the United States. This whole year, that fact has never ceased amazing me. I actually voted very quickly, meaning I didn’t stay in the booth and marvel over the groundbreaking nature of what I had done. Partially because there was a long line and I was trying to be courteous, but mostly because I have been so awed by the events of this year, that I have already pondered the historical merits ad nauseum. I am at first, overwhelmed by a sense of incredulity and then want to leap with a feeling of exuberance and finally the fear kicks in. Fear, that no matter what the polls would lead you to believe, this race will not have the ending we want. I sincerely hope this is not true. I hope that Barack Obama will be the next president of the United States and I hope that he does the incredible job at it that we, his supporters, believe he will do. And isn’t that hope the whole point?