First day of early voting in Taos
Holy cow! This line is long and it’s moving very slowly. I’m sitting here waiting to vote on the first day of voting in Taos (Oct. 6). I brought along two folding chairs, a sleepy granddaughter and some snacks – plus my pen and some paper so I could write this article. The line is so snail-paced, I could take a snooze in this chair, like Genevieve is, before I have to walk my chair farther up the line.
It’s a beautiful, crisp morning without a cloud in the sky, but instead of just sitting here soaking up the sun and slight breeze and good vibes all around me, I’m thinking about all the errands I have to run today – places to go, things to do and this line is like molasses.
No patience. I want everything to happen right away.
All around me people are socializing while social distancing; I hear muffled voices and a few raucous laughs through their masks. Sounds like they’re just chewing the fat – making new friends for the morning. A man named Carl is in line behind me and a woman named Melissa is behind him, so the three of us gabbed a while and now I’m back to my restless grumbling and museless writing.
Two social distance paces in front of Gen and me is a frail, elderly man with a beautiful smile. He’s leaning on his cane and when the line moves, he limps along and seems to be in pain. Oh, there goes Gen, giving him her chair. The crowd notices and sort of cheers and tells her how kind she is. Sweet. For her reward, I told Gen she could go back to sleep in the car.
This crowd is downright jovial. Fellow voters are cheerfully taking turns moving the frail man’s chair. What’s the matter with me? Why am I being impatient? Others around me are laughing, talking; they all seem to be in a good mood – and they’re standing! In a long line. For a very long time. Me? I’m sitting down. Comfortable. Bellyaching to myself.
At least I noticed that I’m grumbling. That’s the first step for changing my mood. The next step is to count my blessings, drink in the lighthearted mood of the crowd and think happy thoughts.
I did that and boy, do I feel better. I also checked the time on my phone and it hasn’t really been that long. Einstein once said, “Sit with a pretty girl for an hour and it feels like a minute; sit on a hot stove for a minute and it
feels like many hours. That’s relativity.”
So relatively speaking, it’s not such a long time to wait in line to be sure you have a voice in this election. If you haven’t yet voted, grab
your folding chair and some snacks and let the camaraderie of the people in line make you feel happy.