Putting the "Fun" in Fundamental

Yesterday was a very good day to be introspective. It was election day.

I, like many other United States citizens, enjoy the freedoms that we have been blessed with. I am free to worship how I would like to worship. I am free to make choices for me and my family. I am free to hold opinions of my own. I even have the freedom to express these opinions in a variety of ways.

For the most part, our form of government works. It might be messy at times, but at the end of the day, I love the whole process of the "Great Debate."

What's funny is how I've changed in the years that I have been actively involved in the process.

I used to be pretty fundamental. Things were black and white. Right and wrong. Smart and stupid. I was a Republican through and through, right down to the red tie I would wear in high school on election days.

I looked at Democrats in disgust. How could they believe what they believed? How can they support these certain issues? What a bunch of crazies.

I look back at that "Jason" and realize that he was a little more "mental" than "fun." Not to say that I am totally "blue," but I think I can understand opposing views a little more than I could in my younger years.

I've learned, many times the hard way, that this world is full of gray. That there is actually more than one way to approach problems and each approach has its pros and cons. I've learned that right and wrong can sometimes mean correct and more correct. I've also learned that at times, I'm forced to choose more against one canidate than really for another. I now identify myself as a conservative thinker, instead of a Republican. I find things from both side of the fence that I can agree upon.

As the years slip by, I find myself shifting more and more to the middle of the political spectrum. I've found that as I shed more of the "mental," I can actually have a little more "fun."

Is this what getting older does to people? Does it soften us? Does it give us the perspective to finally say that I don't have all answers? I can only say that for me it has, and it has energized me more than ever to be active.

I voted and will continue to do so as long as I am able and have that responsibility. Our system might have its flaws, but it's worth it.

I think Winston Churchill said it best: "It has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried. "