election day

I cast my vote early this morning. Too excited to remain in bed, I got up at 6 AM. Arriving at my polling place at 6:30 I found a line awaiting the 7 AM opening. I talked eagerly to the folks in line near me for a short while then read the magazine I’d brought and put in my iPod headphones. I found it difficult to contain my excitement. A small cheer went up at 7 when the line began to move into the building. It didn’t take as long as I thought it would to get to the registration table. I assisted the blind man in line behind me and then took my registration card to the next line where a man stickered me with an “I voted” sticker. He put it on vertically as if it didn’t matter. But it does matter, it matters so much.

The Provisional Ballot Booth, off to my left, was a piece of cardboard table display tri-folded to look like the voting booth privacy sides – like a child’s copy of a real voting booth. In magic marker the poll workers had written “Provisional Ballot Booth,” seeming almost a joke. It sat low on a child’s desk, this being the elementary school gym.

Finally I was called to the booth. It’s not a booth any more, but a small Diebold machine on thin metal legs, plastic privacy sides stand up left and right, the cover of the machine forms the front barrier. My first choice was for president and my guy was listed first. Barak Obama and Joseph Biden. I voted. As I ran through the rest of the ballot – bond issues, judges, constitutional questions – I was eager to get to the end. I reached the end of the ballot and it gave me the page for review; I saw at the bottom right corner a large button titled “cast ballot.” As I touched it my eyes welled up with tears. I just can’t believe I’m getting to do this. I never thought, in my lifetime, never, that I’d be able to vote for a black man for president. I never thought, ever, that there would be a man who energized the electorate like this man. I never thought, ever, that I’d be cast a vote in an election where the choices were so stark – between a mechanical, twentieth century approach to the world and a twenty first century digital-age understanding. I never thought.

I’m beside myself with excitement. I’ve been ferrying voters to the polls from the senior center near me. But many of them voted absentee so the load is light. Later today I’ll go to the gym for a little work out. I’m just trying to pass the time until 6 PM when some polls start to close and I can start listening to results.