America, the beautiful once again

I was in the car on the errand, parked, when the update flashed onto my phone: Joe Biden was the president elect. I started crying, relief and joy flooding through me. Democracy and decency had won.

Back at home, I hugged Dave and did a happy dance with Ben. Max was giddy, too. He had also been rooting for a new president, although he does have a soft spot for Donald Trump because he thinks he's funny. This is because he believes that Alec Baldwin (aka Donald Trump on Saturday Night Live) and Trump are the same person, no matter how many times we've pointed out otherwise. 

Excitement was literally in the air. Church bells rang, people shouted in the streets, cars honked their horns. I like how Chrissy Teigen summed up the mood on Twitter: 

I appreciated this refrain that was making the rounds: 

And I really, really loved this:

We took Max, Ben and our cousin Roxy out to lunch, along with Dave's dad, in a nearby town. As we sat at the cafe—on a street that was closed so restaurants could have outdoor seating—cars cruised by with people holding Biden/Harris signs out their windows. Some stuck them out of their sun roofs. They'd honk, and the crowd would erupt in cheers. Max got up and stood on the street corner; he wanted to be right there, pumping his fist at the cars. People may have been a bit perplexed by his shirt—red, his favorite color—but his enthusiasm was unmistakable.

Late that afternoon, we took a walk to town. Max has long enjoyed walking around waving a flag, and now he had another great reason to do it. Halfway there, Ben started whining that he was tired and had to be carried and Max got grouchy because he needed an early dinner. Because: family outings! But when we arrived, we got caught up in the excitement. Our main street also closes down for dining. A DJ was blasting music, and people were literally dancing in the street. 

Shout out to my brother-in-law, Steve, who wanted Trump to win. But when I couldn't get my hand on a copy of the newspaper to save for posterity, he hunted one down sent a photo. Sorry, Steve!

This morning, I woke up to the news that Pfizer had a Covid vaccine found to be more than 90 percent effective. Just, wow. To be sure, we have two long months ahead before the inauguration and who knows how many months until the vaccine is fully available. But today, I feel hope that I haven't felt in forever.