Today, we voted for love of country.
As a family.
For weeks, Brock has been asking when "we" get to vote. For as long as he can remember, he has accompanied us to the polls. This year, the appeal of early or absentee voting was on our mind as we anticipated a busy election day. However, when Brock began expressing interest in accompanying us, we knew that it would be an important teaching opportunity if we waited until election day so that he could stand in line and "participate" in the process (which means standing next to mom and dad in line and then sitting quietly on the floor at mom's feet until she was done voting. It also means collecting an "I Voted" sticker when mom and dad turn in their ballots).
Clarke arrived home early from work and we packed up our little family and headed to the polls. We voted. We submitted our ballots, collected our stickers and headed back home. In the 30 minutes that it took us to vote, Brock learned a lesson that we can only teach when election time rolls around. It is a privilege and a duty to participate in the voting process and it would be a wasted opportunity if we didn't begin teaching our children about the value of voting while they're young.
