Hope

Hope comes in many forms. Last night, it came to my home town as presidential hopeful Barack Obama. I was one of the lucky ones to get into the stadium and hear him speak.

I stood in line with friends for about 4 hours to get in. It was like a party on the street as thousands like me and my friends turned out to support him. We were joyful standing together for a common goal. And even when heckled by a those few (and I mean very few) who dared, we didn't take the bait. We just smiled and joked amongst ourselves. It was particularly fun to note the line extended so far that it was across the street from where Palin spoke just days ago. She didn't rally these kind of numbers!

Entering the stadium was like entering a rock concert. It was electric and packed. I admit I was surprised my tiny corner of this red state turned out so many people to see him. I was overwhelmed by the size and diversity of the crowd. It was thrilling. And then the rock star appeared.

He was articulate, intelligent, humorous, and inspiring. He makes me hope - and fear - for Tuesday's outcome.

Those of you who read this know my politics so aren't surprised by my enthusiasm for him. But it has been a LONG TIME since I've been this excited about a candidate. And so I wish and pray for Tuesday. And I have hope that the U.S. won't disappoint me yet again.

But I worry. I worry for Obama's safety (just listen to the repeated "kill him" at McCain and Palin rallies and you'll know what I mean). I worry that the Republicans will pull another rabbit out of their hat and we will have to endure four more years of narrow-mindedness, greed, and corruption.

Still, if Obama is worried he isn't showing it. And it's his calm and determination in this storm that makes it okay to hope.

So this morning I bask in the glow of knowing a good man with good ideas loves his country enough to want to serve it for the next four - and the following four - years. And God willing he will.

I could ramble endlessly about some of the things he said, like the clear argument that 8 years ago we had a surplus and it took the current president 8 years to accumulate as much debt as ALL 42 previous presidents combined. He reminded this home of hunters that he wasn't interested in taking away their guns. He spoke of old arguments like big government v little government and said he was about BETTER government. But instead of my babble, this article shares the highlights.

So this morning, hope shines bright in Southwest Missouri . . . and Wednesday morning, I hope it shines bright across the U.S. and beyond.