On our way to meet the Obama Train! Washington D.C. January 17th, 2009
I LOVED Tuesday!! I loved, loved, loved TuesdaY!! And I will tell you why:
I witnessed History. I witnessed America at it’s best! I must say, I have never been prouder to be an American as I was this Tuesday when Mr. Obama raised his hand and became the 44th president of the United States. No matter what your political views, this was a proud day for America.
At 6:30am on Tuesday I was curling my hair, getting ready for work when Beyonce’s “All the Single Ladies” began reverberating from my bedroom. I ran to my phone to see who in heck was calling me at 6:30 in the morning and saw that it was my dad. ”Hey Dad,” and without even pausing, huffed, “is everything ok??” (because seriously, who’s father calls at 6:30 in the morning?) ”Hey babe,” my dad said, “gettin ready for work?”
“Yea, what’s up? Why are you calling me?” ”Oh, I just wanted to be the first person to talk to you on this historic day.”
I couldn’t believe it! This was my father talking. My father, the staunchest Republican in the United States (practically Libertarian) called me up at 6:30am on the morning of January 20th to say, “This is America at it’s best. We are witnessing history.” And it was true. Martin Luther King Jr’s words, “history bends towards justice” became manifest Tuesday, as I watched men, women, and children of every color and every walk of life brave the cold January weather to celebrate and honor Barack Hussein Obama’s acceptance of the office of President of the United States.
But do you know what my favorite part of the whole day was? It wasn’t the news coverage of the event, or the tears streaming down the faces of my friend’s eyes as we watched an African American assume the highest office in America; it was these words:
“For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the firefighter’s courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent’s willingness to nurture a child, that finally decides our fate.”
So here we are Bonners. We have a new administration, a new era. But what does this mean for our country? It means absolutely nothing unless we change, we grow, we work for justice, for peace; unless we struggle, serve, and love. What does it mean to be a citizen of the United States? What does it mean to be a good citizen of the United States? That is my question to you.
What are you living for? Why do you serve? Because if we love this country, we need to know how to fix it’s problems. As Alex de Toucqueville said over 150 years ago, “The greatness of America lies not in being more enlightened than any other nation, but rather in her ability to repair her faults.”
Please comment back to this post and tell the world what you are passionate about, what you care about, and how you are working towards creating a better America.
And now, the work begins.
Becky Grinstead
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