A Historic Moment

Last night, I did something I've never done before. I went to a rally for a presidential candidate. As soon as I got the invitation (an email from the Obama campaign), I sent it to friends and asked who was interested in going. There was little hesitation. All of us are excited about this race - excited about the potential for change.

I arrived at my friend Kendria's house at 4:45 pm (late!), and we hopped in her husband's truck. The five of us - Kendria, her husband, her brother-in-law, myself, and Nerissa (she was almost as excited as I was!) - headed down to Manassas, Va. What was supposed to be a one-hour ride turned into a three-hour ride, which included a potty-break and a run-through McDonald's for dinner. The traffic was so bad that we had to park on the sidewalk of the main road and walk almost two miles to the fairgrounds. Once we arrived, we stood in a sea of people that seemed to stretch farther than the eye could see on all sides. They announced that we were 80,000 strong. Unbelievable. It felt like a historic moment. It felt like the moments my dad describes in the 60's. It felt like we were a part of something much bigger than ourselves.

We waited another hour for Senator Obama to arrive. Various people made speeches, they played music, etc. Just when my impatience was getting the best of me, he arrived, and it was almost like a rock star walked onto the stage. The crowd exploded in cheers. Nerissa and I joined in the chant, "YES WE CAN!" It was really an awesome moment. His speech was stellar, as always.

Even though I didn't get home until 2:30 AM, and my legs were sore and feet were cold, I was thankful that I'd gone and that I'd given Nerissa a memory she'll never forget. We will be able to tell her children and my grandchildren that we were there together. Inspiring to say the least.

Nicole