As a little girl, I loved the night before Christmas almost more than Christmas Day. I would sneak out to the living room, curl up under the glow of the twinkling lights on our tree, inhale the piney scent and dream of what the next day would bring. On Christmas Eve, it felt as if all was right in the world, or was about to be.
Tonight feels like the best Christmas Eve I have experienced in my life. I have supported Barack Obama for more than a year now, and he has shared with me the privilege of being a part of his historic campaign for the Presidency. Because of Senator Obama, I saw the glint in the eye of a New Hampshire primary voter who loved talking with a Texan about the issues that matter to him. Because of Senator Obama, I experienced the satisfaction of recruiting more than a hundred precinct captains in Dallas, Texas--that (former) bastion of Republicanism. Because of Senator Obama, I have met some of the most talented and dedicated and passionate volunteers I have seen, or may ever see, in my lifetime.
Because of Senator Obama, I had tears in my eyes last summer while watching little African-American boys splash in a pool on a hot Virginia day. Why the tears? I was dreaming of the day soon to come when they will see a man in the White House who looks just like them, and know that they, too, could be there one day.
Our work is not yet finished. But please pause tonight to savor this. This work has been valuable. We are about to taste the fruits of it. But hasn't the journey been splendid as well?
To tomorrow . . . and hope . . . and change . . . and to us all.
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It appears from the comments that many of you are searching for holiday music that captures your mood tonight. This is the carol I cannot get out of my head: