No time to celebrate

I decided over a year-and-a-half ago to support Barack Obama for president. I made my first endorsement post to BlueOregon in February. I did a lot of tabling and visibility last summer, not to mention creating this and another website. I am a bit of idiot when it comes to hope: I believe in it. Long before I'd heard of Obama or even Jesse Jackson ("Keep hope alive!") I believed in hope. Hopelessly. It's what's kept me moving forward in my life rather than stepping in front of a bus or getting a job at a bank.

And now that this seemingly hopeless thing has occurred, something I thought could happen and am too hopelessly hopeful to not believe was possible, I have to say: I'm underwhelmed. Not because it's not the most amazing political moment of my life; it is. It's just that it's not enough. Not by a long-shot.

"Enough" begins with winning in November, but even that won't be truly enough. Changing the world — bringing into reality all that we hope for today — that will be enough, so I'm willing to say that in that way, I'll forever be unfulfilled. It's not, however, the enormity of the task ahead that drains me of the kind of excited emotion I thought I'd feel; nor is it how it took forever to get here (and then Hillary's churlish, selfish refusal to congratulate Obama when he won last night). Rather, it's the simple fact that November is so far away. Over 150 days in which for McCain and his evil minions to throw enough lies and crap around that enough voters get stupid enough to buy his line of nonsense (such as the voter in New Orleans I heard on NPR this morning: she was going to vote for Hillary and now will vote for McCain — because of Rev Wright).

I will celebrate the actual nomination in August — mildly. I'll go nuts on Election Day. And then next January, on Inauguration Day, I may be quiet but that will be the real day to celebrate because that is the day the real work, and the real opportunity, begins.