Four years ago I took an early discharge from the hospital to go home and vote on election day. My son O had just been born. We were both stable (me after a c-section and he after a brief stay in the NICU). Things were going well enough that although the medical team suggested I consider staying another night at the hospital, I was determined to get out of there and cast my vote. Fortunately the medical team agreed. I remember thinking it was the beginning of ensuring that O knew how marvelous and luxurious it is to be heard. Voting is quite possibly the loudest thing we do.
There is nothing else to say today but that I urge you to vote. As my kindergartner left for school–his voter registration in hand for the mock election– I felt hopeful. Hopeful that we’ll increase election engagement, that we’ll advance the gift of democracy by increasing the vote, and that our children’s generation will be active, vocal stewards for the truth. Today I’m excited that we can raise children who spend energy working to improve equality of all people, improve access to health care for all people, and bring equal rights for all families.
We’re remarkably privileged to live in a time where all adults can vote. As parents we often vote on behalf of our children–how can we think of the future without them?
Facebook and Twitter are aflutter today with parents posting their election experiences with their children. Just as our children learn to speak by listening and by echoing what we say, our children can learn to vote by joining us.
Imprint the power of your vote…grab onto the hand of your child or steady yourself with the handle on the stroller or the car seat.
I say do anything and everything you can today to cast your vote. And make sure you bring those little ones along.
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Marion says
I listened to my children (8 & 5) talk about the election all afternoon and evening, debating the different candidates and hoping for their choices to win. I was amazed that they absorb so much, and I was encouraged to hear the WAY they talk about the candidates. They didn’t make nasty comments or insult a differing opinion, they just talked back and forth. It warms a mama’s heart.