While I haven’t used my blog as a political mouthpiece (really, that’s not the purpose of this blog. I’m not really sure what the purpose of this blog is anymore, but it’s not to rehash things that could be more eloquently discussed elsewhere), it doesn’t mean that I’ve hidden my support for Barack Obama either. While he’s not a perfect candidate, I feel that he best represents many of my most important political beliefs (not to mention that I find him personally inspiring – something in short supply in the political world). I will proudly vote for him later on today, and I will nervously watch the poll results come in Tuesday night and hope for the best.
Over the past few years – beginning with his powerful speech at the 2004 DNC – Obama’s shared his own story of struggle and triumph with America. In particular, he spoke highly of his grandmother, Madelyn Dunham, who raised him during his youth. Obama spoke of her with such respect and reverence as he detailed the personal sacrifices she made to provide for him. He even bravely used her as an example when talking about race reltations and prejudices (in that brief, fleeting moment where it looked like we could have an intelligent conversation about race rather than just hurling angry accusations back and forth). So I can imagine Obama’s sadness upon hearing that his grandmother passed away the day before Election Day. In an entirely unrelated way (well, at least consciously), Jenny & I were discussing our grandparents that passed away recently tonight, so I know how a loved one’s death comes as both a moment of grief but also as a moment of closure when the suffering of a loved one finally ceases.
After we spoke, I sat down to my computer and had an idea. I’ve been impressed by the way the Obama campaign courted a legion of small donors (if Obama wins, he will win in large part because of the tremendous orgazational advantage his campaign created) fueling his campaign. I frequently thought about donating but never pulled the trigger for whatever reason. So tonight I took the money that I would have spent on a campaign donation and made a donation to The Jimmy Fund. Sure, the first inspiration for this came from the suggestion in Ms. Dunham’s obituary that donations be made to cancer research, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized that this is a donation for many people – even though my own grandmothers didn’t have cancer, I know that cancer research will help improve the lives of many and that they would both be proud.
So in honor of Senator Obama’s grandmother, the woman who helped raise this man who has inspired so many of us, and both of my grandmothers – two women I hold in the same regard that Senator Obama held his - I hope that my little part tonight helps to improve the lives of others, and I hope that tomorrow night around this time, Senator Obama will start making plans for how he will spend the next few years improving all of our lives.
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