REFLECTION

Mary Englert, a longtime friend, sent this Garrison Keillor column to me. It was sent to her by Kay Eaton, a Christian activist, who throughout the years has put the words of the Gospel into action. I am grateful to Kay and Mary for sending this on because it provides great material for reflection.

The American people are poised to do something that could not be imagined 10 years ago, or even five, which is to vote for the best man regardless of his skin color and elect him president.

The campaign against him is not one that anybody will point to with pride in years to come. It is a long trail of honking and flapping and traces of green slime, as if a flock of geese had taken up residence in the front yard.

But Barack's cool poise in the face of blather is some sort of testament to American heart and humor. The man has walked tall and his wife has turned out to be the brightest figure in the whole political parade, an ebullient woman of quick wit and beautiful spirit.

Bravo, Michelle. Onward, America. We've all seen plenty of the worst - the sly cruelty, the arrogant ignorance, the fascination with trivia, the cheats, the weaselish and piggish and the buzzardly - but we can rise above it if we will only recognize a leader when one comes along and have the sense to let him lead.

by Garrison Keillor, author of a new Lake Wobegon novel, "Liberty."

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