With plenty at stake, what can we do to be heard? Vote

The line was short, just a couple of people ahead of us on the first day of inperson voting at Tempe History Museum.

My son Sawyer and I had done our homework before we went, marked our sample ballots and brought them with us. We wanted to get in and out quickly.

We came early, waiting until Sawyer was done with his classes for the day, hoping to avoid longer lines on Election Day.

Everyone in line wore masks. The poll workers had on plastic face shields. The booths were spaced apart. The black markers came out of one bin and were returned to another.

The whole place smelled of Lysol. I thought about how I could vote by mail like practically everyone else I know. It’s a good option, though this way I wouldn’t have to track my ballot’s progress to make sure it was counted.

I figured voting in person was no riskier than going to the gas station.

Even if there was a risk, this was important, probably the most important thing I’d do all year. And what a year it has been. The last couple of years actually.

I filled in the bubbles next to the candidates I supported. I marked the propositions, mostly yes and a no.

Voting in person makes me feel like a part of the process, especially now, when we seem so far apart.

No matter their politics, people are voting. There’s a lot at stake.

We’ve been talking about this election forever, but I’m done talking.

I want to be heard. This is how I make that happen, not yelling at the television during debates or arguing with people on social media.

I folded my ballot, slid it into an envelope, sealed it and pushed it through the slot in the ballot box.

A poll worker handed me the “I Voted” sticker. I stuck it to the front of my overalls.

I voted.