I Voted

It’s that time of year again. Winter? Fall? No, Election time. The time of year when everyone has a voice...if they choose.

I can’t not vote. I have to. People died so I could have that right. I honor their sacrifice with my vote. Voting is easy. Voting intelligently is hard. It’s hard to see through all the rhetoric to the heart of the matter. It’s hard knowing who to believe, who to trust. Even when I study the issues, I don’t always know what is real. Still, I vote. I love having a voice.

I am often an election judge. I have done this for many years. My first election was held in a home and ballots were counted by hand in a back bedroom after hours. We graduated to voting machines where you punched a ballot with a little stylus. Now everything is done electronically and there are policy and procedure changes every election. Everything changes. This is progress.

If only we could see the same kind of changes in the campaigns. I vote for more honesty and integrity. I vote for less name calling and blame. I vote for clean campaigns. I vote for clarity. I vote for accountability. I vote for real change.

My voice and your voice can make a difference.

One week from today I will sit behind the table looking very official, encoding ballots and handing out I Voted stickers. Be sure to stop by and get your own. You’re always in fashion with an I Voted sticker.

Will I see you there?

Linda Garner