Nov. 4

Every time an election rolls around, I feel a great surge of appreciation and love for this country. I joyfully immerse myself in the coverage, the personal stories, the debates, the polling station experience... all of it. Even the tiring parts are still interesting and tend to suck me and Andy in so that we spend hours on end listening to the radio, following CNN, or discussing political snippets heard throughout the day.

I am forever amazed at how we manage to make it all work every 4 years. Even with the setbacks, the upsets, the potential frauds, and inevitable voter disenfranchisement, the country manages to move forward and do its best with each administrative change. (And with the hope that each time we move through the cycle, we will do it better.)

Even though Andy and I have talked about moving if Obama does not win, I don't know that we ever would. Where else can you watch presidential candidates making fun of themselves mere days before votes are to be cast? The ability for the same politicians who are fighting so hard to appear dignified, experienced, and sharp to engage in parody and satire so they may poke fun at their idiosyncracies and frailties is a unique and beautiful thing.

As uncomfortable as it might be at times, it's still rather amazing such political discourse and artistic expression is possible and embraced in the midst of world-changing decisions about which millions of people are desperately passionate.

As the returns are coming in, I am hopeful things will go our way this time around. It's unbelievably exciting to know all of my friends scattered around the globe are sharing in this moment with as much anticipation and hopeful glee as I.

We are united in our collective participation in one of the greatest gifts of our democracy... ready to see what the next four years will bring and praying for a truly new direction.