I've never been the blogging type. Recording my activities and feelings always seemed daunting to me, and the fact that I was asked to do so at the Democratic Convention has been stressing me out for months. I've been in Denver for a week, and for the the entire first week that panic was ever present. But as the first day of the Convention has came and went, I now find myself with far too much to say.

To say I came of age in Democratic Party politics would probably the best way to explain my childhood and adolescence. I decided I wanted to be a campaign manager at nine, the same age I started watching the Democratic Convention. I worked on campaigns before I could drive, and though my interests in Democratic politics has evolved over time, they have never wained.  I've sat in election night parties that have gone both ways-- I've cried with the Kerry team out of heartbreak and the McCaskill camp out of elation. But I have never been so invigorated by politics as I was today.

Just walking in downtown Denver the excitement was palpable. Street vendors selling Obama buttons left and right, people fawning over Joe Biden like he was a rock star, but the minute the Convention was gaveled into session is when it really began. Delegates, public figures and ordinary citizens alike took the podium, and made it clear that we were on the cusp of history, told us how great our candidate was (for some in the room, it was the first time they really came around to that) and how important every person in the room, watching on tv, or voting in November was to what was quickly evolving from a campaign into a movement.

Many compared this campaign to those of John Kennedy in 1960-- passing the torch to a new generation of American leaders. Leaders, embracing the future, not living in a Cold War past. The one thing they were quick to remind the audience of all ages, races and religions, is how important we, the youth will be in this election. We are showing in droves, going door to door and paying attention in ways we never before. It was the representative of the Youth Delegation, Amanda Kubik, who said it best:

"Thanks to Barack Obama young people have found their voices" but is then sure to point out that "we young patriots will change our country" long after this election is over. The youth of the nation has learned that decisions are made by those who show up, and we want our rightful seat at the table. This election is a watershed moment in American history, and we will not sit idly by and let others decide our future for us anymore.

For more on the night's events visit the StudLife blog at: http://blogs.studlife.com/?p=28