Black Belt in Voting

               Jayne A. Clark

I park my car far away, stand tall, take a deep breath, don't smile, walk slowly, say hello to those I pass by, proudly and surely. . .

How many times have I had to give myself a pep talk?  Twenty times?  A hundred?  Oh, I don't even want to think about it, it's too much trouble. 

It's time to vote again. There, I've said it. 

It's about time to mark the calendar again, get up an hour early or take off from work, walk past all those small groups of people wearing straw hats and brightly colored clothing, holding up banners, those smiles and waves, those who huddle together like county fair barkers, enticing each and every one over the age of adult to come one, come all, come on in and join our group.  Noise roars, bands play, TV cameras and hot lights blare, anchor people everywhere.  What's all this? Who are all these people?  Are they making a movie somewhere?

I just want to vote, ok?

Some of us dread the voting process, first there's being in good standing, then registration, then that member card to keep up with, and remembering dates.  And that awful booth, those pegs, and who's who, and all those statements, which our government makes complicated to understand.  Are you voting for or are you voting against?  The complications of voting, is it just too much trouble?  Are we too busy to listen, too busy to find out, too busy to register, too busy to get involved, too busy to know our candidates inside and out, too busy to value opinions, too busy to park far away and too busy to exercise the right given to us so long ago?  

Casting ballets for our leaders of tomorrow is a right, a gift of freedom, liberty, and a responsibility as Americans all to be cherished.  What other reasons should we have?  If admission were charged, would we go in masses,  as we do to a theater for sought after tickets, or to a crowded grocery store on a stormy day for bread and milk, or patiently get in the long line at a gas station across town that offers its precious liquid at two cents less than all the others?  Wonder how many of us would stop our busy schedules, park far away if only a select few had the privilege?  Aren't we leaving it up to a select few anyway?  Are we evolving to the notion, "of the few, by the few, for the few shall not parish from the earth"?   

Now, I get it !    Ben Franklin said it long ago.  He got it even then.  "They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety."  That's the reasoning behind all that noise, bands playing, straw hats, small crowds and the TV anchor people.  It's simple.

Now, I get really it !  John Adams got it too.  He said it best. 

"Liberty cannot be preserved without a general knowledge among the people, who have a right…and a desire to know; but besides this, they have a right, an indisputable, unalienable, indefeasible, divine right to that most dreaded and envied kind of knowledge, I mean of the characters and conduct of their rulers."

Liberty, freedom, and responsibility comes in a neatly tied package, one cannot exist without the other.   The notion of 'for a few' was thought about from the very beginning.    A master plan was developed by a few guys for ALL, not just a few.  They gave total thought to a neatly tied gift and assured the aggregate package.  Voting is power.

The next debate I find myself in, and I hear the old adage, "I never liked his/her policies, I didn't vote for him/her anyway",  I won't agree nor disagree without asking the question, "but, did you vote, and are you registered to vote?"

I know what's important now.  Walking from my far away parking spot, proudly and surely, the banners, the small crowds, bands, TV cameras  and all the other stuff, define our liberty, our freedom and our responsibility.