A thought as Election Day approaches.

We have a lot of those pine trees that drop their nettles. My poor driveway gets covered with them time after time. I’ll easily expend two leaf blower batteries (God bless Black & Decker) in clearing the nettles.

Some time ago as I was blowing them away, the mail carrier pulled into the driveway with a package. She also brought my ballot for the election.

I told her, “I prepared a path for you,” showing her my leaf blower.

It reminded me that the right to vote was secured for us by the sacrifice of those who prepared the path for us in democracy. I immediately thought of my combat engineer father who was building bridges in Belgium when World War II’s Battle of the Bulge broke out. Then there was my mom on the home front, who drove my German grandfather’s bakery trucks in New Jersey. (Think Rosie the Riveter.)

I once knew a man who was a pastor. As a young man, he applied for conscientious objector status and spent that war stateside, jumping out of airplanes, putting out forest fires.

Everyone played a part. For their sake, I take my right to vote seriously.

To me it is part of the “rent” we pay for our freedoms. Freedom that was secured by the blood, sweat and tears of our ancestors.

Isaac Newton said, “If I have seen further than others, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.”

Please consider this as you exercise your franchise this year.

John Hazel

Palmerton