Tuesday is about me

Just thinking today about how elections--especially highly-partisan and contentious elections like this one--tell us as much about ourselves as they tell us about the people we ultimately elect.

How I vote is an expression of what I value for myself, for my family and friends, and for my community, nation, and world. Who I vote for tells who I think will best lead me and my country in the direction I believe we should go, and whether that direction will benefit just me or the common good. My vote tells where I find a balance between my own self-interest and the interests of Americans I can never know.

How the nation votes tells where the nation's heart lies. Unfortunately, things like the electoral college and gerrymandered congressional districts obscure a clear sense of our collective heart's desires. But if we look carefully, we can know who we are and what we want to become. We can see at least in outline our values and our ideals.

Everyone seems certain that Tuesday and the days following will be rough, and filled with rage and accusations and bitterness. Maybe we will surprise ourselves. Maybe we will show ourselves to be better than we think. That would be a great relief.

In the meantime, I can prepare myself to be a good, fair and, if necessary, very vocal citizen who resolves neither to belittle nor to lose respect those with whom I differ. How I react to this election says as much about me as does my vote itself.