Election Day
The day many of us have been waiting on to pass has finally come. No more electioneering. No more smearing. No more time to decide. The country is moving on, for better or worse.
First, I want to thank all those Georgia voters who cast their ballots early, some 35 percent of registered voters in all. Their commitment to the electoral process (or is it fear that a last-minute glitch would keep them from voting?) has significantly reduced the waiting time for those of us voting today. I stood in line for just over one hour this morning at Northminster Presbyterian Church in Roswell. And speaking of the church, I want to thank all those hard working poll officials for making the process as painless as possible. Only one voting machine had problems, but even it was quickly fixed. I delight in the irony of a sectarian house of worship acting as a facilitator for secular democracy.
I sensed an easy mood inside the church/polling station this morning. Friends and neighbors came together or bumped into one another there. Some people read books, others listened to music, and the lady in front of me watched the “Sex and the City” movie on her iPod. Strangers conversed with one another, but everyone seemed to quietly respect the notion that any discussion of politics was impolite and in poor taste. This morning was not for debate, but rather communion. This morning was a time to celebrate democracy in all its imperfect forms, and to appreciate the dedication of all voters who stood patiently in line to participate in the affair of today and in the affairs of tomorrow.
I’ll admit that I did hear a few slips of the tongue when it came to political discourse. But it was mostly innocuous ignorance about past presidential races. It was a good reminder that now is not a time for sweating the past, though we must learn from it still.