The drawing above is my 9 yo daughter's rendition of what she thought 'Voting Day' would be like. Our kids even thought (or were hoping) that the candidates...especially the one we were voting for...would be there in person...cheering us on! Or us cheering him on! Or everyone just cheering in general! Wouldn't that be cool?
This year we voted for a write-in candidate for the first time...and I have to say, it made the whole process so much more interesting and...what word am I looking for?...sobering? significant?...for us. We voted with our conscience more than we ever have before...and that was a good feeling. It's not that we haven't ever felt enthusiastic for a particular candidate before, but over the past decade or so, I have to admit, we've become fairly apathetic overall. Our children were far from apathetic, though, so we explained to them that we couldn't really expect this candidate to win, but that's also not really the point. What this election brought home to us this year was that we have an example to set for our children. We also felt more than ever that we have been given an extraordinary privilege in this country to protect and uphold a set of extraordinary documents - one in particular being the Constitution of These United States of America...that our Forefathers drafted and then defended with their blood, sweat, and tears....along with subsequent generations.
Lo and behold, we were actually given the privilege to vote this time around for a candidate that articulated and upheld our position on many issues that we hold dear...including the sanctity of life and our inalienable rights as spelled out by our Constitution and The Bill of Rights. We may not have that privilege again, so we acted on it in this election. Therefore, we supported Chuck Baldwin of the Constitution Party. We are indeed 'One Nation Under God' and we have come to the realization in our family and through this election that a person's vote...done legally and in order....can never be considered 'a wasted vote.'
"Always vote for principle, though you may vote alone, and you may cherish the sweetest reflection that your vote is never lost."
-- John Quincy Adams