Mr. President.

photo courtesy of our friend, Tom Daly

I admit that I was surprisingly cool as a cucumber during the inauguration ceremonies yesterday.  I think that I was excited, and above all, I feel extremely ready for this new president and this new administration.  This morning though, I woke up and clicked on NPR and heared the oath again, and heard the voices from around the country saying what this inauguration meant to them and I got a little choked up.  I hope that as President Obama spoke yesterday, his words were able to resonate above and beyond partisan ties, and that folks, no matter who they voted for, are touched by this profound moment in history, and his dedication to giving it his all as he figure heads one of the more turbulent times in American history.  I feel enormously grateful to ALL of the people that set a standard in the generations ahead of me, so that I am not one of the voices that’s able to add to the din remembering what segregation was like.  I have never seen separate water fountains, alternate entrances, or barred diner counters among others, and for that I not only applaud in awe to the people that came before, but resonate with the conviction that there aint no power like the power of the people cause the power of the people don’t stop.  I think often my generation feels as if we’re living in the shadow of the cultural movements that defined our parent’s coming of age, but yesterday I couldn’t help but feel there’s still pleanty of work to be done, and that history, no matter how good its soundtrack, is never over.