Election Musings…
I love politics — I love the political system — I love the possibility of democracy and I love the empowerment of voting. I am the granddaughter of the first woman to run for public office (state superintendent of education) in the State of South Dakota. I walked with my father as he campaigned for two different presidential candidates and I rode with him as he picked up seniors and drove them to the polls. It’s in my blood.
Last week, six of our middle school students– in separate conversations — (both boys and girls) asked me if it was true that we would be having a war on November 9th. … “Is 9-11 going to happen again and the adults aren’t telling us?” Here in this House built on Confidence, We do faith, not fear.
Late last night, a parent came back to school with her daughter to see me to be sure it was safe for her to come to school today because she had been told by another student that she would soon be deported. The child who was held in fear, and her parents, were both born in the United States. It was about the color of her skin. The words of the Gospel of John rang through me, “This is how everyone will know that you are disciples of mine, that you love one another.”
I remember late one election night when the candidate my father had fiercely campaigned for was losing the election. And his response was to be sure that I had memorized the words to the Preamble of the Constitution as deeply as I had the foxhole prayers that he claimed kept him grounded during World War II.
Last night, in the middle of the night — the time when almost nothing fruitful enters my consciousness — as I let fear grip me…the fear of what we are doing to one another and to the nation built on the commitment to one another, those words from my depths of memory became my mantra…
We the People of the United States,
in Order to form a more perfect Union,
establish Justice,
insure domestic Tranquility,
provide for the common defence,
promote the general Welfare,
and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity,
do ordain and establish
(this Constitution for) the United States of America.
From the depths of my being I want to shout, “We are better than this” — we are not the division that leaves children frightened — we are not the land where accusations are made based on the color of our skin, the religion of our choosing or the political alignment we proclaim. We are the nation — we are the system of education — we are the school where we “show respect, acceptance and concern for ourselves and for others.” We are the place where we “promote a safe and welcoming environment in which each person is valued, cared for and respected.” We are better than this.
Over the last several days, my prayer has turned from the actual elections to a prayer begging God to show us the way to heal — to heal from what is broken, from what is fractured, from what no longer demonstrates to the next generation civil discourse, responsibility for our words as well as our actions and the moral compass of right action. We are better than this.
I know that I am an idealist, but I still believe. I still believe in right action and goodness and integrity. I believe in the power of God and that God prevails in the darkness as well as the light. I believe in fair systems of government and in the importance of every human person in the process of election and the responsibility of citizenship. I believe that leadership matters and that we each have a responsibility to lead. I believe.
I wish I could write an apology to the generation behind me. The “greatest generation” left me with a dream — one that they had given their lives to make possible. Right now, I feel ” impeled to act” — to right a wrong — to create a world worthy of our children, if only in my little corner of our world. There is something that needs to heal. I am not afraid of the darkness and I know that when someone “hits bottom” recovery is possible. The dawn arrives. The light from heaven trickles through the stars. The wildflower grows through the crack in the sidewalk. There is something very possible ahead of us. We have the potential to decide — to shape what is next — to leave the last 18 months behind us and to reclaim “We the People.”
You know…the more I think about it, maybe the whole country is being elected tonight…”We the people…”
