History

Last night Jeff and I went to Ben & Jerry's for our free scoop of ice cream. Afterward we walked over to Deschutes' Portland Pub so that Jeff could enjoy a beer while we watched the election results. At eight-o-clock when the west coast states on the election map lighted up in blue and Obama was announced the next president, the pub erupted with applause and cries of happiness. Jeff and I sat there in shock.

I can't say that I expected McCain to win the presidency, I just didn't expect Obama to win with such a wide margin. My feeling of disappointment at the election result was soon overtaken be a feeling of wonder. I watched the on-screen image of a black woman at Spellman College in Atlanta. Her emotion had brought her to her knees as the people around her celebrated. I looked around me and saw a pub full of white people giving each other high fives and hugs and I recognized that history had just been made.

I never thought of this election in terms of race. For some people this presidential campaign was about a black man running against a white man. For me it was a Democrat running against a Republican. McCain got my vote because Obama's platform was to liberal for me. It was that simple.

As I sit here today in a country where a black man has just been elected president I feel proud. I am proud to live in a country where the color of a person's skin does not put limitations on their aspirations. It brings me joy to know that people of color woke up today knowing that they could accomplish more than they thought they could two years ago. I have a feeling that when Martin Luther King said the famous words, "I have a dream." He was dreaming of today, and that makes me proud.