But, dadgum, we voted, and I didn’t cry until I was out in the car! Of course, I had to sing Nine Inch Nails lyrics under my breath every time I welled up, but NOT A TEAR WAS SHED until after I had safely voted.

In other news, I have now recognized people I know at both the Walmart and the voting booth, and so I feel as quintessentially American as Barack Obama and John McCain.

Sally didn’t get to see me vote this year, and I don’t know if she remembers my tearful explanations at our polling place in Florida four years ago. So this is how I’m going to explain the voting process to her today:

For Sally

We have two major political parties, the Democrats and the Republicans. The Republicans are red, and the Democrats are blue, so you pick your favorite color and vote for it. No? Okay: the Democrats are donkeys and the Republicans are elephants, so you pick pachyderms or cloven hooves (kidding!).

Okay, for real: the red people are like the blood that takes oxygen to your muscles — muscles need oxygen just like we need freedom. The blue people are like the blood returning to the heart to get oxygen. We need to recycle and care for our environment just like our bodies care for our muscles.

If she asks me about abortion, I’ll tell her to go read my post and then pray about it for herself.

If she asks about taxes and welfare I’ll tell her that:

Democrats want to trust those who don’t have enough to take only what they need.

Republicans want to trust those who have extra to give as much as they can.

Which is why I wrote in George Washington, and I’m going to be mighty disappointed when he doesn’t win.

How do you explain to your kids who you vote for?

Jane

*I didn’t really vote for George Washington. He’s dead, you know.

***Updated to add***

I had some good, all-American pizza ready for my hungry second-wave voters. Sally asked me after school if I voted for Obama, because Carson’s dad says that McCain wants gas to be higher, like 300, while Obama wants gas to be 100. I had to disappoint her, sadly.