I can’t let today pass without at least saying something brief about the overwhelming significance of this election. All the obvious remarks go without saying. I mean, even five-year-old Kai had the talking points down: “We want Obama to win because he gives money to schools and health care. McCain is bad because he gives money to war.”

We watched the results from the living room of our friends, the Zarlings. We stuck around with two uber-tired kids long enough to hear both speeches. As Kai sat in my lap watching McCain’s concession, I said “Look – he’s not a sore loser. He’s congratulating Obama, and that’s the right thing to do.” By the time Obama appeared in victory, Kai’s eyes were heavy, and my own body felt overwhelmed by pride, relief, and joy. How wonderful is it that Kai and Melina will never remember a time when a black person can’t become president, or when a woman (all politics aside – and there are plenty of them!) can’t run for one of the nation’s highest offices. It’s about time.

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