Thankful Thursday a little late

I know that technically it's now Friday, however I'M still on Thursday, so Thankful Thursday it is.

Today I'm thankful I'm an American. I know you don't hear that often any more. And no, it's not just because of Senator Obama's speech earlier tonight, though that is part of it. Let me explain.

Here I was, born in to a country where I can go where I please, without a guardian or chaperone. I can wear what I choose. I can cut my hair without the permission of someone else and know that if it upsets them it really doesn't matter. I can drive a car. I can have a job. I can cuss and have sex and read and write whatever the hell I want. I can marry who I want, I can screw who I want, I can have as many, or as few children as I want. I can believe what I want, I can vote how I want. As a woman, being able to vote is a blessing too.

Here I am, in a country that made history today, at least for us. We bucked tradition and went completely against the grain, as Americans have done since we began way back forever ago with George Washington and Ben Franklin and Thomas Jefferson and John Adams, and all those other "founding fathers". As America did when the first pilgrims landed. I'm not saying that we haven't made mistakes. There are plenty of things to hang our heads in shame about in our history. As there is in every country's history. However, we started out bucking the system. We said "Hey, I don't like that, I'm gonna try something different" and away we went!

This election marks for an amazing change and buck to the system of how things have been done. As of now, whether Senator Obama wins or loses this election, it truly DOES mean that ANY little boy or ANY little girl who dreams of one day becoming the President of the United States CAN attain that. And for that, I am thankful.

Why is that so important? Think about it.

By the way, yes this is a VERY American post. I am an American and I'm proud of that fact. And if you aren't, I'm sure you are proud of where you are, so at least you can understand my pride, even if you disagree with me.

I digress. Why is it so important that that one man, that very particular man, has been nominated the Democratic contender for the biggest and bestest (I KNOW it's not a word, I don't care) job, the one that EVERY kid dreams of, either of meeting that person or BEING that person?

Because he's black. OOOH, I've gone and done it now. I made it about "race". He's not only "just" black, he was "poor black" from the south side of Chicago. I lived in Chicago. I KNOW first hand what the south side is like, and trust me, that boy that has become that man faced outstanding odds AGAINST him to be where he is standing today. I'm thankful for that boy's family who wouldn't stop, who wouldn't stop pushing that boy up, who wouldn't let the "odds" hold them down. I'm thankful for them pushing that boy so he can be so much more than he was "slated" to be, teaching him the courage and stamina and strength to stand up and say "I WILL" instead of sitting down and saying "I CAN'T" as so many young ones do. That boy became that man who stood up there before 84,000 people today and said "I WILL". And for that I am thankful.

I don't know who I'm voting for in the fall. When November 4 comes around, I'll have a good idea. It might be Obama, it might be McCain. I've got to see who McCain chooses for V.P. and I've got to keep my eye on the debates and McCain's own speach next week and in general how things unfold. I won't have made up my mind firmily until about Nov. 1. I know, I suck like that.

However, that one man made history today. He opened so many doors for so many people just by standing up there today and saying "I WILL" and for that, I am thinkful. He reminded me that being an American is GOOD and my country is GOOD and worth having pride in and worth standing up for myself and saying "I WILL". Even if you disagree with what he says, even if you disagree with his policies or his voting record or the number of zeros in his bank account, he made it a reality that America IS the Land of Hopes and Dreams and that every little boy, every little girl, no matter the odds, has the right, deserves the right, to follow them all the way through. And for that, I am thankful.