After watching “The Force Awakens” for the first time, I left the theater with a complete high. It was fun to whoop and holler whenever an old favorite appeared on screen. I’d purposely not consumed any liquids or any type of food several hours prior to show time out of fear of needing a bathroom break or being struck by some unfortunately timed food poisoning.
It was the movie I’d waited my whole life to see.
There was some quick Snapping (NO SNAP SPOILERS, OBVIOUSLY) about the awesomeness of Rey.
She was it. She was everything. With no training, she went toe to toe with Kylo.
That’s a whole other level of badass.
She was a badass.
She.
Sigh.
I cried a little that night. Yes, there were tears for Solo back in the theater, but at home the tears were because Rey didn’t need any boys to save her. She took care of business. She was gonna be a Jedi. I cried because I knew my nieces would never have to listen to their brothers' nonsense about girls not being able to be Jedi Knights or shoot guns or play professional basketball or any of the other things that girls weren’t supposed to do.
Like become President.
Yes, politics has become a shit show. But our complacency played a part in that. Another discussion for another time.
I’m with her.
I’ve been with her since in ’08, when I rushed out to the airport in Sioux Falls to catch a glimpse of her speaking just before the primary. I wore my “I <3 Hillary” shirt, which prompted a smiling security guard to question, “Who do you love?” as I walked in.
It was easier to stay relatively quiet throughout the primaries in the current election. There weren’t a lot of people with whom I really felt comfortable discussing any of the candidates. I got crispy from all the Bern supporters, even though we agreed on many issues. And the lack of disrespect for Hillary Clinton from liberals and conservatives, the ones who reduced her to an angry bitch, that got really old.
Oh, I’m sorry, when you call her a bitch, do you use Madame Secretary Bitch, Senator Bitch, or First Lady Bitch?
Knowing delegates from South Dakota gave Hillary the votes to secure the nomination this afternoon gave me a boost of pride. It was easy to feel like my vote never mattered there, since I rarely voted for a winner. But damn, knowing that primary vote from last June helped nominate the first major party female for President.
The tears didn’t flow until after I started watching highlights of other states’ nominations. Yes, a nod to Bernie and his brother's casting votes. I am not heartless.
But Jerry Emmett. Jerry Emmett, the 102 year old delegate from Arizona. The woman born before women could vote. The woman who remembers her mother being able to vote for the first time.
Just when I think we’ve completely jumped the shark and the world’s gone mad, a Jerry Emmett pops in and reminds me that more of our progress is good than bad.
I say while recognizing my privilege as a straight, cis, white person.
I say that knowing that we face great challenges domestically and around the world.
I say that because today we nominated an intelligent, tough, experienced badass woman for President.
As Tina and Amy said, "Bitches get stuff done."