I Voted Early

My original intention was to join the throngs on November 4, wait in line in celebratory anticipation of the long season finally coming to a close, cast my ballot, and hope.  What changed?  Change itself.  The admonitions, pleas, encouragement, and voices imploring me to exercise my civic duty to help my candidate and vote early.  Perhaps I could savor election day in a different way this year.  So, this morning I drove in search of the local board of elections office — a place I had never been before.  En route, I listened to a national NPR story about the NC Senate race, where age was noted as a factor in Elizabeth Dole’s effectiveness, the commentator asking the guest if people knew that she was as old (age 72) as John McCain, and a listener e-mailing that her 92 year old mother was sharp enough to be president or senator.  The commentator chimed, “I’m 72 and I’m not ready to be put out to pasture.”  I spoke silently  to myself, this isn’t about age.  It’s about competency.  My 92 year old mother could be president, too.  She beats me in Scrabble every time.

The parking lot of the election board offices was packed.  A van from the local Christian retirement community pulled in ahead of me, taking up two of the handicapped spaces.  Eight elderly folks cued up in line just before I could get there first.  They rested on canes and the arms of compatriots.  Yes, there was a line, and it took much longer to get through it than I normally would have spent during any other national election on election day at my regular polling place.

In the state where I live, we have the option of voting a straight party ticket, but we must also separately vote for president and any non-partisan offices.  I considered and then tossed out the idea of taking the easy way out.  I wanted to savor filling in this ballot, taking the black pen and filling in all the little oval circles.  One of the little ladies said, don’t you have a machine that punches holes.  The election worker said, no, we don’t have any hanging chads here.  I smiled and kept marking my ovals.  It was delicious.  And when I left, I felt satisfied and filled with a pride I had never felt before.  I voted early.