Making Freedom Count

This weekend I finally received my absentee ballot in the mail. Honestly, I was starting to worry that I'd done something wrong when I filled out my request for the ballot because it took so stinking long to get here. But it's here and thank goodness it is because election day is almost here as well! I borrowed Natalie's trusty pink flamingo six-color pen and got started with my research. I'm not one to just fill in the bubbles for every candidate from one party or the other; I've found that my values don't quite align with either major party so I have to take it candidate by candidate and choose which person in each race will best represent me and my views. 


So today I spent two hours voting. It took me two hours because I don't actually live in the county where I'm registered to vote and I mostly get my news from the BBC.  I can tell you a lot about Brexit, but I know next to nothing about the candidates from Wyoming or their platforms. Just to keep it real, I'm going to admit that this is probably one of only a handful of times I've voted in a midterm election. But there's a lot of crazy stuff going on in America right now and my options for action were limited. I could sit around and complain, keep my fingers crossed that things will get better on their own, or exercise my right to vote. 



I know it's only a small thing and that no matter who wins or loses in the races I voted for today, I can't now just check off some imaginary citizenship box because I've voted and not be involved for another two years. Voting is just one way to make our voices heard. I've decided to be a better American and actually try to keep a finger on the pulse of what's going on in Washington and in Wyoming. I really shouldn't know more about Theresa May than the people representing me in Congress. I'm going to call my representatives when they're voting on the issues that matter to me and let them know where I stand. 

Thomas Jefferson said, "We do not have government by the majority. We have government by the majority who participate," and it felt good to participate today. 

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