Brilliant … But Bouncy

They Know What’s at Stake.

When I was growing up, I wanted to vote. It made sense to me that everyone would get a vote. And it was a right of passage for me.

But by the time I was old enough to do so, I wasn’t terribly interested in politics. And I only wanted to vote for one person: the President. I read an article in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that clarified the positions of the two candidates, and then I voted for Michael Dukakis. He seemed to think like I did.

That’s as far as it went. I didn’t know the difference between Democrats and Republicans, or even if there was a difference. I didn’t realize that I would also be voting for a whole slew of other people, besides the President, and I didn’t really care.

Since my first voting experience, a lot has changed.

My children, on Election Day, asked when we would know what was happening. We watched some of the stories of the polling issues on MSNBC. And it isn’t even a Presidential election year.

They remembered chanting along with 800,000 other people: “Vote them out! Vote them out!” in the heart of our nation’s capital.

This year, they know what’s at stake. They know how important this election is to our country – and they realize that their votes will count in every future election. They are concerned about the issues. They want things to happen in these United States that make sense to them. They want a say in their own future, and the future of their families..

They want to vote.

And I couldn’t be any prouder of them for that.