It was his birthday, but he gave us a gift.
On August 29, 2008, John McCain managed to give the nation a gift that, unlike most gifts, has grown in value rather than depreciated. I know Senator McCain is a bright man and a polished politician, but I don't believe he could have guessed the magnitude of his running mate selection. He knew her record, knew her family background, and knew her convictions. But certainly after the election, on November 4, 2008, he couldn't have known the impact she would have on the face of politics, the power she would wield in her future endorsements, and the lead she would take on issues such as health care, illegal immigration, and the Ground Zero Mosque. He certainly couldn't have envisioned her standing at the Lincoln Memorial on the anniversary of Dr. King's "I Have a Dream" speech delivering a speech of her own to a crowd reportedly larger than the one that gathered 47 years prior.
John McCain learned immediately after introducing Governor Palin to the world that the Left wouldn't play nice, and things were going to get very ugly, but I doubt he knew that the woman he tapped to stand alongside him would not only be able to weather the storms but emerge unscathed, undeterred, and unafraid.
Governor Palin's story speaks to me, as a woman, a message of never allowing gender to be a roadblock but a well of strength from which to draw. Her story speaks to me, an educator, of the potential within each life that dares to prepare, for as she says, open doors are defined simply as "preparation meeting opportunity." From one Christian to another, Governor Palin speaks to me a sermon, like those I've so often heard in church, of the "suddenly" moments God grants us, how in the blink of an eye one can enter her destiny with an awareness that she was born "for such a time as this."
I love my country more today than I did before "Sarah Palin Day" launched in Dayton, Ohio two years ago. I appreciate my freedom and those who sacrifice to protect it more than I ever did before that day. And like never before, I am committed to being a voice of common sense and righteousness, rather than embracing silent compliance to an anti-God, anti-American, damaging agenda that some would promote in the name of change. Governor Palin represents a willingness to speak truth despite the cost. She has unveiled and shattered in my mind the lie that it is somehow unthinkable and even unholy to call out others who are doing the unthinkable and the unholy. Many espouse the idea that one must sit idly by and do nothing rather than making some noise and rocking the boat. Not Governor Palin, and not I--not anymore.
After losing the election, she could have called it quits and retreated. After murderous miscreants set fire to her church, she could have sat down and said nothing more. After partisan piranhas tried to bankrupt her family and her state, she could have refused to fight back. After heartless hacks shamelessly attacked her children, she could have gathered them up and run to the hills. After the media became increasingly threatened and, therefore, increasingly hateful, she could have become bitter, thrown up her arms, and despaired. And who would have blamed her? The haters' intent has always been to crush her spirit, but if they have, she has certainly shown no signs of it. Instead, she continues to smile, continues to hope, and perseveres in the hard work it takes to take back America--and she doesn't seem to be slowing down one bit.
While overcoming incredible odds, Governor Palin has managed to be an inspiration to people who had never been inspired previously to get involved. She's lifted candidates out of anonymity into the forefront. She has battled for the respectful treatment of those with special needs. She has stood in the gap for the most vulnerable of us all--the unborn. She's been an advocate for those who selflessly serve our country. She has lifted her voice for fiscal sanity, limited government, and protecting our freedoms, our faith, and our Constitution. She has become a symbol for common sense, common decency, and the common man and woman.
And most of this has transpired in the last two years. Add to that the impressive resume' she already possessed prior to August 29, 2008--which is the reason Senator McCain tapped her to be his running mate to begin with--and you've got a leader who has brought America to the precipice of something great that we have yet to see in its fullness. I don't know for sure exactly where Governor Palin has set her future sights, but I feel confident in stating whatever road she chooses to ride, whichever path she opts to occupy, and whenever the time she takes that step, she'll travel with the right message, a storehouse of support, and, most of all, great content of character.
Yes, it was his birthday, but we got the gift. God bless Governor Palin, and God bless America!
You can read what I wrote last year on this anniversary here, here, here, and here.
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