We have just survived another DAE (Day After Election).  In our diverse democracy, it is never a completely happy day.  And in our diverse democracy, it is never a completely sad day either.  There always seems to be a ray of hope, even when all else is devastating failure.  And there's always an arrow of despair landing among the most hopeful outcomes.

Remember last year?  Many of you reading this would agree that the election of our first black president brought us high hopes and celebration.  But then there was California and its rejection of marriage equality.  This year it's Maine, although Maine seems to be on par with other results of the day.  I'm crushed by this reinforcement of the California decision, on our coast this time.  I've already called my state senator to urge her to continue her support for marriage equality in New York.  We need to redouble our efforts.

I hope that a positive note will come from the Washington State vote for GLBT rights, when they finally get all the mailed-in votes counted.  And then there's that upstate New York district, which voted for moderation rather than extremism.  We have a former CUC family living in that very district.  I've got to remember to give them a shout-out.

And we go on.  Democracies are messy, full of stops and starts and bad ideas.  But I keep going to that polling place on election day.  Always hoping.