Sophie and Harry, you were both still sleeping when I went left to cast my vote this morning. While I walked over to our polling site, I was thinking about the day and how exciting it is to be a part of history. There's been a lot of talk about HOPE and CHANGE in this election and for the first time in my adult life I feel CHANGE coming. I started thinking about how glad I am that you are here witnessing these events, instead of shaking my head at the news wondering what kind of world have I brought you into.
I also thought about the things you will remember about this election. Harry, you may not remember much but Sophie, I know you will. And while you don't understand a lot of what the candidates talk about, that hasn't stopped you from supporting a candidate for president. I HOPE that you remember this time, when age, sex and race didn't matter all that much when we nominated individuals to hold the highest office in the land. I HOPE you remember the passion people had for this race. I HOPE you remember that your teacher volunteered to knock on doors in Pennsylvania and that in this country, she is free to do so and talk about it with her students. I HOPE you remember the mother of your classmate who is ineligible to vote but still encouraged those who can to do so. I HOPE that when you are old enough to vote that your generation will care as much as this one does about the election. I HOPE you will know that you do have a voice and that you have every right to express it in the voting booth and I HOPE you know that your voice, along with others, can bring about real CHANGE. I HOPE you remember this day and what it means to so many Americans. I HOPE you remember the excitement and that long lines meant voters turned out in record numbers. And I HOPE when you look back you remember that this freedom and the privilege to vote was hard-won. I HOPE that, in eleven years when you cast your first vote, that you do so not as a perpetually disappointed and frustrated citizen but as a proud American. Am I proud today? You betcha.
Love, Mom
I also thought about the things you will remember about this election. Harry, you may not remember much but Sophie, I know you will. And while you don't understand a lot of what the candidates talk about, that hasn't stopped you from supporting a candidate for president. I HOPE that you remember this time, when age, sex and race didn't matter all that much when we nominated individuals to hold the highest office in the land. I HOPE you remember the passion people had for this race. I HOPE you remember that your teacher volunteered to knock on doors in Pennsylvania and that in this country, she is free to do so and talk about it with her students. I HOPE you remember the mother of your classmate who is ineligible to vote but still encouraged those who can to do so. I HOPE that when you are old enough to vote that your generation will care as much as this one does about the election. I HOPE you will know that you do have a voice and that you have every right to express it in the voting booth and I HOPE you know that your voice, along with others, can bring about real CHANGE. I HOPE you remember this day and what it means to so many Americans. I HOPE you remember the excitement and that long lines meant voters turned out in record numbers. And I HOPE when you look back you remember that this freedom and the privilege to vote was hard-won. I HOPE that, in eleven years when you cast your first vote, that you do so not as a perpetually disappointed and frustrated citizen but as a proud American. Am I proud today? You betcha.
Love, Mom
4 Comments:
Mer,
How true. I watched the news all night and am so very happy that Mr. Barack Obama will now be President Barack Obama. What a great time in American History. Unbelievable that African Americans were once slaves, and now to have an African American in the White House is so, so wonderful.
What you've written to Sophie and Harry-Boy is very well written!!
Love all around,
Mom
I love the words you wrote to your children. They are words that will live on in their lives forever. As Obama (Excuse me... President elect Obama)said early on in his campaign "We need a change." We got a change and hopefully left it open for newer changes like a woman or a Jewish person for president.
I had said that, if this country elected Obama, I might be willing to call myself a patriot. I haven't been this proud of my country in a long time. Except for all of the stuff in California, Florida, Arkansas and Arizona. Still, we did something in this election.
This was a really beautiful post. I brought the girls with me to New Hampshire on different occasions.
(I didn't mean to bring Charlotte, actually, but she had goopy eyes on election day and so couldn't go to school. I strapped her in a stroller, and we spent all day going house to house to get out the vote. By the end, she was very unhappy, but on we marched, knocking on doors, saying "have you voted yet? Okay, can you go like right now?" It made for a day of less-than-great mothering, but I so deeply believed that we were doing the right thing).
Now, I've got photos of them both - Merrie standing by the side of a NH highway shaking a sign, and Charlotte at the Obama headquarters on election day, surrounded by messages of hope. Charlotte will remember nothing of this, Merrie will have only vague messages. Still, I am glad that they were there. Glad that they were a part of this history, a kind of reclaiming of the beauty of this democracy.
Hope, yes. Yes.
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