How My Election Day Went, And We Landed A New President
Published: Thursday - November 6, 2008
Words by Carl Lamarre
Barack Obama and his family following his victory speech (Photo: AP)
It's 6:31 a.m. I'm scared to move, scared to breathe. As I was lying down harnessed in the fetal position, I clutched my pillow as a stream of tears flooded my whole room. Gazed in utter amazement, I found my eyes fixed on the remote. I looked at it with careful precision. I felt what separated me from reality was an evil conscious lurking in the background waiting to unveil to me that once again I've been duped. I sat, looked at the remote, and kept it moving.
"Hey, I'm going to come get you for the election party at Blackburn." Honestly, I didn't care to go. I wasn't remotely interested in the party because I had a date of my own with ABC. Still just to be a fair player, I accepted the invite, and escorted my friend to the event. As I walked in, the first thing that came to mind was me thinking to myself "I need a place where I could meditate and pray." I had promised ABC, that I would make an early appearance and glue my eyes to her solely on my own. So with no hesitation, I quickly told my friend, "Hey I'm about to go to my room." I left, hurried back, and noticed Barack was down 8-3. The kid inside of me started crying, even though I damn well knew we were only two states in. People called, others texted, in regards to my whereabouts. I didn't pick up. I was already late on my prior engagement with ABC, so I promised her to devote my attention to her. One call, two calls, three calls, four. Each time I heard my ringer go off, I swiftly tapped the ignore button, and continued on with my date.
"Obama going in. We won the majority in the Senate already and sh**", said a joyous Greg. I felt like everything was suddenly coming into fruition. Barack was cruising 174-49. Greg reassured me that we had the election sealed up. Still, after what happened eight years ago, I knew I needed more than Greg's overzealousness to confirm Obama's victory.
As I was constructing questions for my Joe Budden interview, I heard these words muffled through my television: "it's official, Barack Obama is our new president." Shocked, I quickly grabbed the remote to switch to a different channel. As I switched, I heard "Barack has done it." "Ok," I said. "Maybe it's just a coincidence?" Every channel I tuned to was spilling out the same information. "We have a new president, and guess what, he's black." I began choking in tears, gasping for air. I wasn't suffocating in pain, I was suffocating in bliss. I called my mother, and just by her voice, I knew we did it. I ran outside to go check out my fellow brothers and sisters, and see how the recent announcement had sparked their attentions. Screams and hugs illuminated the air. The aura simply spelled change. As I ran, I had an Urkel moment, and suddenly tripped. People laughed, but I didn't care. I was too happy. I walked inside Blackburn, and was greeted with a plethora of hugs, and kisses by a bevy of people, some I didn't even know. Even though, I was surrounded by happiness, something told me to go back to my room and pray. I needed alone time.
As I walked in my room, echoes of "Yes we can" seeped through my walls. I wanted to go back outside, but God told me that praying wasn't optional, and was something that needed to be done. I prayed and watched my new president speak. I felt fulfilled in my own right. I started crying again. I cried until sleep grabbed me from my sheer happiness, and consumed me away.
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