A simpler time

 My 7th birthday in the kitchen of our house on County Trunk N, where I grew up in Luck, Wisconsin.

Since my birthday is right after Christmas, this was no easy feat, to get all these kids together for a party during Christmas break. I don't really remember how often I had birthday parties, more than just this once I know, but I do not think it was an annual event.

It was a simpler time for me, likely my parents were struggling with problems not noticed by a 7 year old little girl.  I know that they had daily financial problems, difficulty paying the phone bill, and our lunch money account at school was often short.

But for a 7 year old girl with some pals to gather up to eat hotdogs for my birthday, 

and a cake with 7 candles, 

life was pretty sweet.

(heavy sigh)

Today was a day of national strife.

I stayed up most of the night last night following the Georgian election results.  I was excited about the potential of the win and it was so close I had a hard time giving it up for the night.  

I think I got about 4 hours of sleep.  

I was in school, 5th grade, in Luck, Wisconsin, when JFK was assassinated and the school wide intercom system came on and it was announced that the President had been shot.

I was in a staff meeting at Coors Brewing Company in Golden, Colorado, when my assistant paged me to tell me that she had heard that planes had hit the towers.

And today, I was here, in Rice Lake, watching the results of the Georgia election, celebrating the victory by one Georgian democratic candidate, and the expected victory of the second.

Then decided I would watch some of the procedure to certify the electoral votes.

I had not been exposed to this process before, I knew there was an expectation of protest by some of the Senators, but I fully expected that the process would proceed in accordance with the Constitution of the United States, even if there were some grandstand speeches along the way.

But then all hell broke loose.  

Trump had rallied his supporters to gather up just down the mall from the US Capitol.

This man, who has nearly destroyed our democracy, just will not give it up, this was a coup attempt.  Those evil criminals, his ardent followers, after he prodded them on today in his rally speech today, violated our capitol and our constitution.  

I'll never understand nor forgive anyone who continues to support him.

I've been watching the delayed congressional proceedings tonight and am part of the time appalled and impressed, depending on who is speaking.  

It is an historic event.

This is not a simpler time.

But we have turned the Senate, we have elected a President and Vice President who plan to lead  with dignity and compassion and who will protect the Constitution of the United States.