The Vote

I sat in my room and thought about voting for the first time. I had turned eighteen a few months back and I was eligible. The thought of going to the polls with all of the adults was awesome but there was something that was very wrong. The voting area had been moved to the outer limits of the city where a lot of people had no access. There were no trains or buses and most of the city residents did not own a car.

I sat down for breakfast with my family practically in tears. I had waited so long for this opportunity and as quickly as it came it went. I couldn’t understand why the county was allowed to do this because it so was unfair and it seemed illegal.

My mom blessed the food and our family began to eat. Staring at my food and moving my fork around the plate started to annoy my mom. She demanded that I get up, leave the table, and empty my plate. I did what I was told and went outside to sit on the stoop. The thought of my vote being taken away made me realize that something had to be done. I noticed the community residents going to the big parking lot to have a meeting. They were gathering together trying to figure out what to do.

As I continued to watch the residents walk to the parking lot, I came across an old friend of mine who I hadn’t seen in years. His name was Terry and he stopped to chit chat with me. He told me that he was in a band and they were all off for a few months so he came home. I told him that was nice but the community had a big problem and I explained the voting situation to him. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing. He told me that he had heard about different communities experiencing that problem but he didn’t think it would happen here. We talked for a little while and then he told me he’d see me later.

My twin sister Mary came out and sat on the stoop with me. She told me that sulking and crying would not change the situation and I needed to have faith. I asked her how in the world I can have faith when this was almost impossible to fix. She told me that she believed, in the end, that we would all get our vote. I looked at her, shook my head, and turned away from her. What she was saying was ridiculous and it was annoying me. Mary went back into the house and I continued watching as the parking lot started to fill up.

About an hour later, I saw Terry approaching my stoop. He sat down beside me and told me that he had a list of celebrities that just might be the answer to our problems. He was in the music business and he made a lot of friends. I was surprised and excited when I saw the list of people that he knew. He began to make calls for the next hour. I asked him what was going on and he told me to be patient and wait.

As Terry and I continued to talk I saw about 20 buses coming down the street. I didn’t understand what was happening but then Terry decided to explain. He said that his celebrity friends had called the local bus company here and hired as many buses as were needed to take the entire community to the outskirts of the city to vote. I hugged, kissed and cried all over Terry. He was my lifesaver, my hero. Terry had made my day and I would never forget him for it. My family, my community and my friends were all on our way to the polls to vote and no one could stop us! I looked back into the doorway of our house and saw my sister standing there staring at me. She gave me a wink and a smile, then walked outside to board one of the buses.

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