birthday wishes

Bundled up in slippers, hat, and pjs...i´ve already received a great early-birthday present:
cool weather!
Not that it´s ever really hot around here, but being the aire-fresco lover that i am, I happily welcomed the rains of last night and this morning...as they brought temperatures down from the 80´s to somewhere below 70 (i´m guessing). Plus, I think I just heard my favorite episode of friends come on...the one where nobody´s ready. We don´t really have big plans for our birthdays, but we´ll probably just indulge in some cheesecake, or a movie, or a hike or something. Or we may find ourselves spontaneously taking a trip somewhere- who knows!
Other than that, things are going well. We´re sort of at a standstill with the political situation around here, but we´ll keep you updated. Next thing we know we´ll be receiving our ballots to vote for the US election (hopefully, if the mail doesn´t fail us).
Not to spend too much time on it, but earlier I resisted the urge to write in my state of rage and fury...after listening to last week´s VP debate. Wow. breathe, korie. My heart´s pounding already, but I just want to make my birthday wish and request, especially to the women out there: While, I am still somewhat realistic-cynical about politics and the fact that there are no perfect candidates, I actually feel like we are living in a time when we have an opportunity for change and for hope. We will, for the first time in history, have either a black president or a woman VP. This is amazing and exciting, and my Spanish got really ´good´ suddenly when talking to our host-mom about this.
But I must say, as a woman, as a US citizen, my heart was sickened and saddened a week ago at the thought that our children (our little girls, particularly) might have for a role-model a woman who (my apologies) represents so much of what I believe needs to be changed in US society. In my opinion, we need role models (men and women) who represent intelligence, compassion, and hope. We need people who work for peace and social justice, who honor and make a priority those who are forgotten and oppressed, who are willing to talk honestly about making sacrifices in order to care for the earth and for people who are suffering upon it- often times suffering because of situations they were born into and/or situations that have been placed upon them (poverty, violence, failed health, loss of caregivers-providers, war, trauma, abuse, neglect). I am far from having solutions, but when i hear the options: hopeful talk about making choices, changes, and sacrifices to correct some of our terrible decisions of the past OR fearful talk about ´making ourselves more secure,´ giving to those who already have so much, and being tough-strong enough to ´see things through´ to the finish...the choice seems clearer to me. When I observe the candidates´ behavior: whether they speak and act with respect for one another, it seems telling as to whether they would listen and respect the voices of people in the US and around the world. I have to trust deep inside myself and trust my hope. And I have to, at least, give my hope a chance by supporting someone who I believe might lead us into a world that looks a little more like the kind of place I dream for all living upon it. With this in my heart, I blow out my candles!