I wanted to be there Nov 8, standing in line with my husband, grumbling about having to present my ID, feeling the electoral vibes and filling in that circle for the third and most important time next to Hillary’s name. I wanted to walk across the shuffleboard floor in the Senior Center to the little private kiosks and then watch my ballot disappear into the machine...and indeed, into the history books.
But life happens. A dear friend is having emergency surgery Monday. I’m lucky to have a job that gives me a lot of vacation days and is fine with me taking off for a week to be with her during a difficult recovery, hopefully cancer free. We stood together and listened to Hillary speak at a rally in Feb. We have texted each other Hill memes, volunteered with our local Dems, gotten flipped off for our Love Trumps Hate stickers on the highway. We’ve been With Her because she’s With Us.
So I decided to make it happen.
I took a shower and put a little makeup on. Combed my hair. This is big since I work from home and have three kids. Yoga pants and hoodies are my main wardrobe. I went down to our beautiful City Hall...built in the 1840s. As I walked through the doors, I immediately felt the contrast from where we normally vote on Nov 8 at the newer Senior Center down the street. I walked through the updated remodeled part of City Hall where my husband serves on City Council and my great-grandfather’s portrait is on the wall from his term as mayor in the 1950s. I thought of my uncle, my godfather, who served as City Attorney for decades while I was growing up. I stopped to say hi to my mom, who works for the City. I looked at the oil paintings of buildings around town, our history, our heritage. Both sides of my family have lived in this little rural area of WI since the 1840-80s. My Welsh side came first, my Irish family came a little later on. They journeyed here, worked, lived and died here to give me the opportunities I’ve enjoyed all my life. All four of my grandparents graduated from the same high school I did...and that my daughter attends. I chased my 3 year old down the hallway where I used to wait in line as a kid for my immunization shots when the County nurses came to provide them free before the school year started.
And I stepped up to the counter. I filled in my circles for those I trust. Hill. Russ. And down the ticket. I looked out the window and through the beautiful autumn leaves I saw our Carnegie Library. I was alone but I didn’t feel like it. I felt the love and energy of every one of my relatives through the years that passed through those doors to do their business, cast their votes, support their community. And I joined them. It wasn’t a let down at all. It was a BFD. In fact, I think I’ll be voting early in that building for the rest of my life.