My unlikely journey
No way am I going another month before posting my thoughts on this past week. Hoooooly hell is this an amazing time to be alive. Let me take you back a few years (pre-COVID times).
It was June 2019, the biggest issue at that time was keeping the kids busy over summer break and how the hell we were going to get a shriveled orange maniac out of our House on Pennsylvania Avenue. Living in the midwest, it was not a great time to be liberal, or a woman, in a state that used to be a bastion of science and leaders but has fallen on hard times. So, you do what you can to make sure you improve your surroundings and make yourself heard. You volunteer for local candidates and pay close attention to the next election. Enter Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.
I saw this picture on social media around that time and felt a jolt. I knew as soon as I saw it what was about to unfold. A Biden Harris ticket would be born and they would win. Of course, their campaign would be bolstered by an international pandemic and the absolute worst human being alive in the driver seat of the opposing party. I still felt like this was it, this was right, and I made it happen WITH MY MIND!
What came next, the fight to win the Senate (thanks Georgia), the attempted coup and awfulness that was January 6th, with the pandemic in the background. JFC, was there a lot to fix and healing needed. Always in the back of my mind, would we finally get to elect our first female president? This is what we needed. And she was going to be her.
I love Joe Biden, with all my heart, I wanted to see him succeed. He is GOOD, and kind. He made mistakes over his career but he knew his shit and could get us through a pandemic. He made better choices. He led us away from the pile of human waste that had stained our name and our homes. He can't fix everything or everyone, but he kept us moving. I can't thank him enough for getting us through (even though Garland should have done more sooner); his credit is due. And still I knew, we had to move forward and KEEP our sanity. Joe was starting to age; and dealing with the cracks he kept filling (and he never stopped, never wavered) was taking its toll. Then July 21, 2024 happened.
I won't dignify the weeks before his choice with a spotlight but as I said, age doesn't stop coming and you have to know your limits. But I didn't expect it to happen and I feared it would happen at the same time. That was it, fear...
Tried to keep cool but when President Biden announced he was stepping down from the campaign for re-election, I was a mess. For 4 hrs... Even after he endorsed Madame VP, I couldn't take it. My nerves were shot and it took me a while to really... remember.
She is our best representative, and I always knew it. She is our leader and it finally came back. She is going to be our first female president, representing 51% of the population. Finally!
Last night was, and the whole week just factually, beautiful and freeing. We now have this chance to essentially regain control and build our country into a more perfect union. Our next president, No. 47, is a fighter, an intellectual and a no nonsense, fully qualified AND certified bad ass. She gives us the chance to make things right. President Harris, Madam President, we will show up for you.
On that note I leave you with this verse: "VP Harris, Governor Walz... 2024"
-N
