Hope is Here

Tonight, I went to a sort of scuzzy liquor store to get a bottle of cheap wine for the Election Night get-together some friends were having.

A black woman with gold teeth smiled and said, "A lot of people seem like they're celebrating tonight, huh?" She was speaking to me, and to the cashier. She seemed like a regular.

"Well, I think we have a lot of reasons to celebrate tonight," I told her, motioning to my Obama t-shirt.

She smiled. Then she said, "Well, you know what? I'm just so proud of white people. Cuz, you know, when Jesse Jackson was running a while back, I just voted for him because he was black. I admit it. Now I hear the crazy things he says and can't believe I'd vote for someone because of that. But you white people, you're not like that. You didn't vote for McCain just because he was white. I'm so proud of you! All you white people!"

"I'm proud of all of us," I said, grabbed my wine and headed back out into the drizzle while chuckling at the goofy, but happy, moment that had jut happened. I waited 2.5 hours to vote today, more than two hours longer than I ever have waited before, and sometimes in spitting rain. It felt good, though. Felt like I was making history. Felt part of a movement, which is one of the greatest feelings a person can have.

Ohio just went for Obama. Never before have I actually voted for someone with so little cynicism. Obama isn't perfect, but he's the leader we need right now.

What a historic day for America. Let's hope that Obama fulfills his promise and leads us where we need to be. I've never been more confident that a leader will.