Remember, Remember

Wow. 

Tuesday night was amazing. Words cannot describe. There I was watching Wolf on CNN, Obama was leading by A LOT, but I still didn't want to jinx it. McCain still had the slightest chance of winning. But I still felt really hopeful. Then it was the top of the hour, they started a new session, and Wolf said, " It is official, Barack Obama has just been elected the new president of the United States." Or something like that. 

And immediately I thought, "He did it." We did it. Seeing his picture up there on the screen and thinking that was the next president of the United States, the first African- American president, I really couldn't believe it. And his speech at Grant Park was just incredible. 

He could've really excited the crowd, and reiterated the fact that we had won and made a really big show of it all, but instead he said " We've got a steep climb ahead of us. And it will not be easy" quoting one of my heroes, Dr. Martin Luther King.

Sitting on my bed, with my eyes glued to the television, I had this overwhelming feeling that I was watching history unfold. And yes, I know we've heard it all a million times. But we will also all remember where we were when we first found out he won, when we saw him speak at Grant Park. I've always thought that the best years in American history were the '60's. Yes, despite the Vietnam war and some crazy fashion statements, the '60's was a time of revolution, where people actually cared about this country and this world and weren't afraid to stand up to what they believed in. It was a time of the administration of John F. Kennedy, a time of the civil rights movement, a time of Martin Luther King. And since then, I've felt that America has not had an era of equal importance. Lately, the only thing anyone cares about is who won Dancing with the stars. And I felt ashamed that we as a country didn't fight for anything anymore, especially the things we believed in, because let's face it, we didn't believe in anything. And with the economy in such a bad state, fighting two wars overseas, and millions of people losing their homes, things were looking pretty grim. 

And then a senator from Illinois decided to run for president. Barack Obama winning the presidential election was way more than "the first black president" for me. Yes, the fact that he will be the new president vindicates his ancestors and the millions of countless faces of African-Americans who have been segregated and discriminated for thousands of years. But to me, his winning the election gives people the hope that they have been so desperately searching for in the last few years. Finally! Someone who inspires people, who renews their faith in mankind, who unites people across the country!

I admire him so much for being so courageous in running precisely at this moment, when his tasks as a president will require more from him than any man before him. The obstacles that he has to overcome, that we must overcome, are greater than anything a first-term president has ever had to deal with. He knows the burden he has to carry for all of us, the pressures of being president at this time, the danger of being him right now, and I thank him for his courage and bravery. 

He is not the change that everyone has been talking about, I don't think so anyway. I think he is the first stepping stone, the catalyst to that change we all desperately need and want to "form a more perfect union." He is just the first line of the first chapter of better times ahead. 

The reason why I'm writing so much about him right now is because I simply feel inspired, as I have been recently haha. But he just takes it to a different level. I not only feel inspired for myself, but I feel inspired for the rest of the country, and in turn the rest of the world. 

Again, sitting on my bed watching him speak at Grant Park, I knew that this was a defining moment in our history. I couldn't help but cry, listening to his words, watching everyone come together to witness him as well, and the emotion that he evoked in everyone. It was just a magical moment. I cannot wait to see what the future will bring for us, and for him.

Song of the day: Those Sweet Words- Norah Jones

Until next time

Sary