The first time I voted must have been a primary. I remember it was in the summer and I was with my grandfather, Pop (J.W. Stowers Sr.) We walked up to the polling place in Inverness in the early 1980s. He walked in the Democrat door and I walked in the Republican door and I don’t have a clue who was on that ballot. It felt good to vote but it also felt odd to not follow my grandfather through the door he chose. We finished and got back in the car and back to the errands and yard work and furniture work and there was no mention or asking who voted for whom. We just did our civic duty and went back to life as we knew it.
I’ve voted in every election since then wherever I’ve lived – Tennessee, California, Indiana, Michigan and Mississippi. I wasn’t in Florida long enough to have a residency and to vote, but I would have. I’ve won some and lost some and can’t seem to find a way to get more folks in any election to vote against Mr. Bennie – who just won’t get those pumps built to actually help folks in District 2.
I’ve had plenty of candidates win and plenty of candidates lose. America gets better, then it gets worse, then it tries to get better again and then slips back a bit after each and every election. We’ve survived all the politicians to some degree as each one continues to find ways to profit from their constituents and end up better off than they were before each election. The Greek folks are supposedly the first folks to actually vote way back in 500 B.C. or so and they are still voting and electing people today. And hey, Greece is the birthplace of western civilization and democracy and Western philosophy. So, whatever happens each election cycle, I reckon we could just blame the Greeks for whatever right or wrong is elected. And hey, I was a Chi Psi at Ole Miss in the Greek system, does that mean I’m to blame or praise for good or bad election cycles? Maybe I should have paid more attention during fraternity rush and initiation back in 1982.
As I type this, votes are being counted across the country. This year, I went against my beliefs and actually voted early but that turned out to be a good thing cause the Delta crud got ahold of me and there’s no telling how my ballot would have looked today with all my sneezing and hacking and blowing my nose. But I voted, then went back to my life of calling folks and writing stories and looking for rosters for my upcoming public address work at basketball games. Life goes on, no matter who’s in Washington D.C. or Jackson, Mississippi, or the mayor’s office or who the dog catcher is. Our money says, “In God We Trust” and our pledge of allegiance tells us to be “one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all” and the Lord’s Prayer instructs us to honor God and have His will be done on both earth and heaven and to ask forgiveness for our sins and to forgive those who sin against us. No matter the vote, we’re in God’s hands. There’s a bigger purpose in life than elections but we still must vote and keep praying.
Indeed, keep praying for both sides of the aisle. Choose your voting lever but keep on praying for those who lever against you and let’s all just find a way to get along and find a way forward together.
Can I get an “amen?”
Amen and Good Mornin’! Good Mornin’!
