It was a mistake on my part to have watched the presidential debate at all. It started with pregame hype, and down to the last few seconds, commentators were talking with former governors, along with senators and representatives from both parties, trying to get as much information to the public who were seeking answers. Yes, the debate was held in a beautiful facility in Philadelphia with no audience allowed. That was a smart decision, I thought, one of the few that happened along the way.

Vice President Kamala Harris did make a bold move by crossing center stage to shake Donald Trump’s hand. It seemed he reluctantly returned the handshake. In my opinion, the whole process seemed to go downhill from there.

It looked to me that former president Trump began his speaking always looking at the moderators, which I thought at first was a strategic move in and of itself. As the debate wore on, Harris looked more at her opponent in disbelief over what she was hearing. Her facial expressions and body language seemed to indicate that she was hearing no more than a bunch of lies. Then they both began to shake their heads, and I figured the worst was fast approaching.

At that point, they both began to exceed their time limits and started attacking each other on who was lying about what. We only watched half the debate before I noticed my hands were tightly clenched. A good friend told me that she would not watch the debate at all because it was not good for her heart and soul. In hindsight, I felt the same way.

Honestly, I do not know at this point who our next president will be. But I do know who I am voting for and for now, that has to be enough.

Jennifer Delozier

Easthampton