I was inspired to write this diary by Noweasels, who wrote about all the people she is working for in this election. Noweasels is an awesome asset to the Democratic candidates this year and we all owe her a tremendous debt of gratitude. Noweasels makes her living and gives her spare time in service to the Democratic Party. She and my Dad are a big inspiration to me.
This is the story of my Dad, my inspriration, and why I know he would've voted for Barack Obama.
My Dad loved to argue....which is probably why I love to argue. LOL He was the one who yelled when we held the fridge door open too long. But he was the one who kept us safe while we were sleeping at night. He kept lots of people safe, because he was a Virginia State Trooper. He got bitten by dogs, thrown up on by lots of drunks, saw things nobody ever wanted to see, but he was dedicated.
It was hell growing up as the daughter of a trooper. Everyone thought I was a narc or a snitch. I learned later that plenty of people had threatened the lives of our family. But my Dad believed in justice for all. There was even an incident when he arrested (for DUI) a relative of my mom's who was prominent in county government. That was a bad time, but my Dad stuck to his guns, so to speak. Nobody is better than anyone else. He saw the good and the bad in alot of people. Later, when he left the police force, he built houses....a one man operation. He always gave each house his very best and he always gave everyone a fair shake unless they made him think otherwise.
Dad and I didn't always get along because I was a stupid, stubborn kid, but I learned to appreciate his wisdom when I had kids of my own (don't we all?). I'm glad I had the chance to talk to him about adult issues while I could. I sought his advice often in my adult years.
When Dad was about 57, he noticed that he didn't have the arm strength he once had. The doctors thought he had Parkinson's disease. Turns out he had Supra-nuclear Palsy, a degenerative nerve disease. He stopped building and began watching alot of television. I met Dad and my stpe-mom for lunch once when he came to Charlottesville for a doctor's appointment. What a shock. He was unsteady on his feet...this man who had steadied my bicycle while teaching me to peddle on my own. The Dad who loved to talk to me about politics and news and life, suddenly had trouble forming words.
Within a couple of years, Dad had to live in a nursing home in Roanoke. I drove four hours round trip on Saturday of every weekend to see him and take him his favorite treat...ice cream. Soon, he asked me not to bring ice cream because he couldn't swallow it. Soon after that, the only thing he could whisper was "I love you, too."
When Dad went into the nursing home, he tried to get Social Security disability benefits, but he was denied. His wife, by the rules, could earn $17,000 per year. Everything else had to be put toward Dad's care. Dad spent the last months of his life feeling guilty for his own medical care.
Nobody should ever feel guilty for medical care, especially when that's the only hope. I know my Dad would have voted for Barack Obama just on the health care issue. I know that he would've voted for Obama for medical/stem-cell research, as well. I don't know that stem-cell therapy would have helped him, but as far as my Dad was concerned, we should try everything.
Dad died the day before his 63rd birthday, but if he was still here, I know what he would do on election day.
I don't live in Virginia now. I'll be back soon, I hope. But I have lived there for too many years not to have Virginia in my heart. I even have a daughter named Virginia...Ginny...even though she curses me for that name regularly! LOL
If I was there,in Virginia, and I so wish I was, so I could make a difference for my Dad and others like him. I'm counting on you, Virginians, to be the voice for all those in Virginia and throughout our country, who desperately need a change.
Noweasels is doing her part and I applaud her efforts. ANd I know Va Dare is out there, too! Good for her! I'm asking you to help, too. Please, at the very least, vote....for my Dad...for Barack Obama.
And next time you see a VA State Trooper, tell him/her, thanks from me and my dad, David East.