Mother-Daughter Bonding at the Polls

Paola Brinkley

November 2, 2020

“Mija, who am I voting for?”

“Whoever you want,” I reply.

My mom gives me an irritated look.

“You’re voting Democrat.”

The names of the parties

escapes her, so do the names.

She takes longer than I do

to turn the wheel

and press the button.

I wait for her to the side,

remembering our first time

voting together:

Both of us excited. 

I, eighteen, and she, a new citizen,

We educated ourselves the night before.

I paused the video, explaining each step to her,

and my mom nodded along, 

satisfied with her understanding of tomorrow.

She picked me up after school,

and we headed to the polls.

My mother and I clumsily turned the wheel.

“Mija, it’s not working.”

The moderator looked at us

as if we were kids

caught cheating off each other.

“Turn left to go forward, 

and turn right to go back,” I told my mom.

My mom looked at me like I was telling her

to go join the circus.

The moderator, tired of our chatter,

came to my mom’s aid,

fake smiling, explaining 

the instructions for the hundredth time

that day.

I made each bubble whole, 

And the red button beckoned me

To the finish line.

The American Flag waved ~

“Congrats!” it seemed to say. 

We left the polls, 

wearing our stickers proudly.

My mom has finished.

We leave the poll center

and rip off our masks.

Paola Brinkley is pursuing a bachelor’s degree in English with a minor in music at Lamar University. She has published poetry in Pulse Literary Magazine and has served as poetry editor for the 2020 spring issue. After four long years, Paola is ready for a change in administration.