"Kerry," he starts out, "just never had a plan. For months I wanted to hear a plan. Tell me, did you ever hear him offer a plan?"

My answer: "Whuh, huh, bluh, whuh." Then the dentist does me the honor of removing his hand from my mouth.

"Yes," I say, "I heard a plan. But I don't want to talk about it. I want to go take a nap. And then I want to move on."

Because I really do. And as mornings-after go, Nov. 3 seemed to be going in just the right direction - forward. Sen. John Kerry made the grown-up decision to tuck the lawyers in a drawer and concede with honor early in the day. President Bush promised to lead us forward, and asked for broad support to do so. He said he would work to earn that support.

Oh, I hope he means it. The president did get that whopping record number of popular votes he worked for, but what we need now is a pattern for knitting this country back together.

Not that Bush would look to little old loyal Utah for guidance in compromise and tips on how to proceed, but he might find it by observing the behavior of Utah's new governor-elect, Jon Huntsman Jr. Here was the best surprise of our statewide races on Wednesday night - that the guy who stayed on-message and upbeat during the campaign against an equally well-behaved Scott Matheson Jr. reacted to his decisive victory with such candor.

To a reporter who asked his immediate response to the win, Huntsman responded: "I'm humbled and honored. And a little scared."

The part about being scared, now that is the right answer. When was the last time you heard any winning politician admit that? Certainly not Bush, who would likely characterize that most gut-felt emotion - fear - as a sign of weakness.

Looking back on Huntsman and Matheson, they were the best kind of human beings. They stayed on point. Neither tried to devour the other with distortion and lies. At times it made for a downright dull race. But then, there is no ugly day-after division to mourn, either.

On election night, Matheson walked a block to the GOP festivities at the Hilton Hotel. He embraced his opponent. Huntsman in turn promised to call on Matheson "from time to time" for advice.

Oh, I hope he means it. Because like his predecessors, Mike Leavitt and Olene Walker, Huntsman will need courage to face down the yappy and powerful right wing of his party. Matheson, smart and circumspect, may be the new governor's best reality check when the din grows loud and constant for busting the back of public education with tuition tax credits and for pushing back child-protection laws a century.

Now, we move on. In victory, Bush promised humility and vowed to "serve all Americans."

Oh, please sir, do your best.

hmullen@sltrib.com