barack obama rally

okay.....i haven't blogged in quite some time, but i am back in the mood to talk about what is going on in my life and the world and share my thoughts, so here goes.......
before president-elect obama was president-elect, i attended his rally in columbia, mo (como to those hippsters). election time always seems to inspire and motivate me. as i was preparing to head to the rally, i thought a lot about previous elections and rallys that i have attended.
the first presidential election i was eligible to vote in was 2000 election of george bush vs al gore. i will not lie, i was a gore supporter all the way. this was simply because life in the clinton administration had been good to me and i anticipated more of the same. i had been married for one year during this election and was carefree and wanted to continue in that vain. but, alas, florida and the hanging chad will always be something i remember from that time.
the next election was 2004, george bush vs john kerry. things had changed for me significantly in those four years. september 11th occurred when i was 8 months pregnant with my first child. the WORLD was forever changed at that point. by 2004, i was pregnant with my second child, the economy, for me, was at the beginning of its decline. i attended the kerry/edwards rally and came away inspired and hopeful for a brighter future for myself and my family. but again, we were foiled by the politics of the times.
now 2008........i began this election as a supporter of hilary clinton. i am still to this day a hilary clinton supporter! but she was not our candidate and after reviewing the choices i had remaining in this race, i went with who i thought would be the best choice for this country: barack obama. i, of course, felt what a lot of others did......that america would never elect a black man as president of the united states. i began to prepare myself for 4 more years of hardship under a republican administration. but president-elect obama made a pitstop to columbia, mo (30 miles up the road from my home) and i felt drawn to see him as i was drawn to see kerry/edwards 4 years prior. from the moment i stepped in line to await entrance through the gate, i felt "something." as my father and i stood in line, i made "friends" with those around me. people from small surrounding towns, college professors at mu, college students with $2 in their pockets........this was america.....this was me.......i knew these people.
we walked through the gates and were greated by the sights......

just seeing "missouri for change" in lights, gave me goosebumps and that little rumble in my stomach. i knew this would be great. we waited inside the gate for over an hour. i was excited.....

finally, time to begin......the royalty of the missouri democratic party were all present and accounted for.....judy baker, robin carnahan, and the next govenor of this great state of missouri, jay nixon

then it was finally time for barack obama to come on stage. just seeing him in person brought this sense of euphoria to the crowd. it was as if everyone present knew this man was destined to be something wonderful to us all. he only spoke for about 25 minutes, but in that 25 minutes, i felt as if i had been touched......as if i could face tomorrow because we were going to be okay. my family has struggled in the last 4 years. we have worked and worked hard, but it never seems to be enough. with the election of barack

obama, i feel as if my silver lining has come. i can see it now. this is my dream come true.

there is the further signifcance that his election holds for me and my family. i wish that my grandparents could be alive to see where we are today. my mother's parents (my grandmother and grandfather) and her cousin were big in the civil rights movement. her cousin, charles billups, was one of the organizers of bloody sunday (or so the family i have been told). i wonder, what would they say? do they know?

i wish my father's father was still alive for this moment. i can see the tears in his eyes because i know he never thought his grandchildren would see this day.

at the moment of his speech, i was proud to be standing next to my father. a man born in 1939 to a school teacher and a pullman porter......a man who reminds me of barack obama. i was thankful that he not only got to witness this presidential candidate but later be at grant park for the day this man would be named our next president. god is good!

i think about and thought about that day....my sons......they can dream big! they must dream big!

well, as i feel that i am rambling at this point, i am not making any point whatsoever, and i am about to fall asleep, i will wrap this up for the night. i will continue sometime in the future with my sarah palin rally experience (i attended that the day before the election) and the whatever else has occurred since i last blogged. until next time.