Actually, the crowd wasn't entirely strangers. As has happened to me in previous political rally experiences, you don't remain strangers with your fellow attendees for long. I met a lovely retired Air Force couple from Denver and a pair of ladies from Fort Collins while standing near the front of the line (we were about 200 people back), and we had a great time chatting for hours about the upcoming election, what the candidates would actually be like in person, why the man behind us received special bathroom access denied to the rest of us (turns out he was the Monument police chief), and how much warmer we'd be once the sun came up.
Our first glimpse of history was being able to line up right near the flight line where John McCain's "Straight Talk Express" airplane was parked. A second plane was parked right behind it, with "McCain-Palin" emblazoned across it, and that's when the enormity of the possibilities really began to hit me. The oldest presidential candidate was here, my long-term senator from the home state of Arizona. The first Republican woman nominated for vice president was here, and I was going to hear her speak. Maybe I'd even be close enough to get somes pictures.
Little did I know that somehow, in some way I could have never foreseen, I would end up in the very front row! Surrounded by a new group of only-strangers-for-a-few-minutes, we all cheered the various preliminary speakers and sang along to all of the great patriotic tunes performed by a brass quintet and a jazz band. We gleefully shouted "One nation UNDER GOD!" as the Boy Scouts led us in the Pledge of Allegiance. We sang along proudly and loudly with Lee Greenwood's immortal "I'm Proud to be an American." We even managed to appreciate the little high school cheerleading squad who tried to lead us in rounds of "U.S.A.!" and "Palin Power" chants, but who were woefully out-decibeled by the ever-expanding crowd and ever-mounting anticipation. Our feet were numb and our lower backs were killing us from standing on concrete and asphalt for hours, but no one complained. We were too excited, and the excitement continued to build...
Finally, a cheer from the back of the crowd signaled the arrival of the executive vehicles. Only a few minutes to wait until the future President and Vice President of our country would be in the building! I began to wish for earplugs and the cheering and shouts of children and adults of all ages reached even higher levels and reverberated off the metal ceiling and walls. It was only a matter of time before the place would erupt... 
And erupt it did when, a few moments later, Sarah Palin entered the building with John and Cindy McCain in her wake. It was one of those breathtaking moments that make you feel so proud and so blessed to be an American...
Sarah Palin spoke first, presenting many fine highlights from her introductory and convention speeches. She didn't really say anything new, but it was thrilling to witness her intensity and sincerity first-hand. If you have been awed by her confidence through yout television set, I promise you, it is NOTHING compared to how electrifying she is in person! (And yes, boys, she really is that good looking!)She then turned the podium over to John McCain, and a noise level I thought could not possibly get any higher somehow did. McCain has frequently been derided as a poor public speaker during this campaign, but that's definitely not the man who stood six feet in front of me today. He spoke with a passion and earnestness that is impossible to convey on television, but is impossible to ignore in person. And his message of change was emphatic and heart-felt, and the crowd couldn't help drowning out his final remarks with all the enthusiam and patriotism he inspired.
The highlight of the day was one I couldn't capture on film, however, and that was the moment when he and Palin came down off the stage to greet the crowd. What had been a friendly-but-well-packed crowd was quickly becoming a mosh pit as everyone pressed forward with outstretched arms, just hoping for a grazing touch or wave from the candidates as they passed by. Pressed up as I was against the rail, with arms full of campaign signs and American flags, it was all I could do to stay on my feet! But they made their way toward me, surrounded by an entourage of Secret Service agents, and I was one of the fortunate ones who shook all of their hands.
John McCain noticed my red Arizona Diamondbacks hat, and as I shook his hand I was able to say, "God bless you, sir." He thanked me and said, "And you."
Cindy McCain is a gorgeous woman with a gorgeous smile, and as I shook her hand I said, "My brother is in Iraq and I'm praying for your sons, too." (She and John have a son in the Navy and another in the Marine Corps.) She said, "Thank you, I will pray for your brother, too."
Sarah Palin is as approachable and friendly as she is confident and enthralling, and as I shook her hand I said, "God bless you and your family, Sarah. You are all in my prayers." She took my hand with both of hers and smiled wide. "That means so much to me, thank you," she said as she gave my hands a squeeze.
It all happened so quickly, they were such fleeting moments... and yet every single one of them looked me directly in the eye as they spoke to me. I left the rally feeling as though I could walk the streets of Washington, D.C. in a few months, see John McCain in a Presidential motorcade driving by, and he'd stop the car to say, "Hey, there's that Diamondbacks fan I met in Colorado!" Those fleeting moments of personal connection made a lasting impression on me... one of pride in my country and its leaders, one of heartfelt sincerity and passion about the things that matter most in this world and in this country, one of deep appreciation for our nation's history and of hope and wide-eyed optimism for its future.
Every American should experience this kind of bubbling, overflowing enthusiasm for our freedom at least once in their lives. This love of country is so unique to America, we must cherish it! I consider myself extremely blessed to have experienced it today, when I was given the chance to shake hands with history... Come on, sing along with me... And I'm proud to be an American, where at least I know I'm free -- and I won't forget the men who died who gave that right to me -- and I'll gladly stand up next to you and defend her still today -- 'cause there ain't no doubt I love this land... God bless the U.S.A.!
Colorado's seasons are very distinct -- it's one of the things I love most about my new home state. I've always wanted to live in a place where leaves change colors, where snow glistens, where blossoms bud, where warm sunshine meets cool breezes. And I particularly love how spontaneous these changes are here in Colorado -- the first snow always seems to come from nowhere, the first green leaves of spring always burst in giant clusters, the first summer thunderstorm always scares the beejeezus out of you...
