Toward what sea or lake could this river be flowing? It was obviously High Tide, the likes of which had not been seen in that small town for generations.
Ahh. . . it was Barack Obama who had come to Leesburg, and 40,000 change-seekers had traveled from near and far, prevailing through gargantuan traffic jams they themselves had caused, just to greet him. My trusty little Panasonic Lumix camera stretched its lens eye as far as possible to capture a glimpse of him at the podium -- we were so far away we could barely see him.
"Well hello Virginia!" Senator Obama exclaimed. "Gee, this looks like the REAL Virginia to me! And y'all look like REAL Virginians!!!" *
And the mighty crowd roared with thunderous approval up into the dimming Virginia sky. It was a wonderous evening, imbued with an atmosphere of History. Although the event had all the thrills of a megarock concert, the throngs of people were remarkably peaceful and considerate in behavior toward one another (and toward the few McCain-Palin supporters on Leesburg streets who stood out in front of their homes watching in awe). We were glad our young daughter could witness it.
A kind gentleman with three cameras around his neck was standing on the hood of a Jeep and photographing the spectacle. At my request he took an on-the-spot portrait of us "Real Virginians," and emailed it to me later that night.
Of course, the Real Virginia includes all kinds of people, of all kinds of persuasions and signage preferences.
The man standing on the jeep hood and taking photographs turned out to be a locally well known stalwart conservative Republican -- a Member of the Virginia House of Delegates. He made sure to enclose the photo above along with our family portrait, as if to remind me that the gigantic cascading Obama crowds sweeping for change across the nation have 'company' that won't be going away any time soon.* Barack's "Real Virginians" quip came on the heels of Alaska Governor Sarah Palin's statement from the previous evening, in which she espoused her view of the "Real America" represented by small towns.
