One Step Forward, One Step Back

I watched the results trickle in with enough anticipation to fill the all the oceans, many times over.
I thought I might vomit a few times, but I held it down and buckled in for the roller coaster ride.
I've known for some time now that we were on the cusp of a historic event, and that the tides were changing in the climate of our country's politics, but I didn't expect to be overwhelmed with joy, relief and excitement as I was on Tuesday night when I heard those words come across the television, "And with 270 electoral votes, we can call it now, our new President elect is Barack Obama!"
I had goosebumps on my skin from head to toe, and tears welled up in my eyes. I always thought that we'd see, in my lifetime, a black president, but I always thought for some reason that it would be later, much, much later.
Honestly, I thought that we'd see a woman as president first, but I suppose we haven't come quite that far yet.
Wifester had succumbed to the sleep fairies over an hour prior to the announcement, but I had to wake her up to tell her the good news.
"Honey!" I yelled, "Honey! Wake up!"
"What'sthematter!?" she stammered from a sound slumber.
"Obama won! You're missing history in the making!"
"Oh, really? Cool!" she ebbed out, just before covering her face with a pillow and promptly returning to her previous state of consciousness. Then she briefly awoke again to ask why Obama didn't play the Jefferson's theme song, just scare the bejeezus out of all those redneck, "a BLACK man in the WHITEhouse?!" people.
I have to concede, she makes a good point, it would have been funny. But as quickly as she made me chuckle, she was snoring again, so I gave up on celebrating with the Wifester and turned my attentions to the Sunny-dog to tell her how wonderful the news was. Her tail wagged, as though she truly understood, but I think it had more to do with the puppy crack that is formally called Happy Hips Chicken Strips which I treated her to in celebration of the monumental occasion.
I stayed up to watch McCain's concession speach, which I applaud him for. It was appropriate, sincere, and touching. And he actually seemed to get it. We want something different than what we've had. Obama stands for exactly that.
Eventually, I headed to bed feeling like the weight of the world had been lifted from my shoulders. I slept the best night's sleep that I've had in eight years, if not longer.
The next morning I awoke to a bright and sunny world. The sky was clear. It was a beautiful day. I could feel the shift in the Force. I felt the lightness to my step.

And then I hunkered down to read the reports of how California's Prop.8 panned out.
Ouch.
Gay marriage, newly approved there, was stricken from the rights of thousands of people who recently wed. Florida and Arizona both passed bans on same sex marriage as well.
How about that absurd bill in Arkansas to ban gays and lesbians from adopting?
Ouch.
It appears that Arkansas would rather children stay in group homes, or foster homes, being neglected and unattended to, than to place them with a same sex couple who would love and cherish that child forever.
That is truly a lose-lose situation.

So although I am proud of the progress my country has made in race relations, I am deeply saddened by the overwhelming bigotry and hate that has shifted to a new target, my sexuality.