Hope

Yesterday morning my energetic three year old stood by my side as I opened up the home page on the Internet. Suddenly, she started jumping up and down, pointing, and excitedly asked me to let her see something on that bright, busy page. "Arakinama arakinama!" she seemed to say as she bounced. She did not stop, "Mama, please, I want to see arakinama." I struggled to understand, and asked her, "What? You want to see a rockin' mama?" Realizing that I just didn't get it, she took a deep breath and said slowly, "Arak Obama." Ah, yes. It was clear now, Barak Obama, the man we have all been reading about for so long.

My daughter is not the only one so excited. Millions have been struck with the urge to jump up and down for this new president and his family. A buzz is in the air all over the globe. Watching the inaugural ceremony with my family on Tuesday, emotion welled up inside of me. There was an aspect of humanity which touched my core even through the cold medium of technology. I was moved by the excellence on display, with poetry, music and diction, and I shared, with so many, the feeling that this man is, perhaps, different. Having experienced the lows of corrupted politics first hand, my confidence that one man may ever make a difference is relatively nonexistent. There is, however, this hope.

Hope, that we may rely on our leaders to make decisions which help the whole. For responsibility, accountability and transparency. There is a hope for peace and an end to the resentment of our nation. Hope that we will manage to slough off the burden of low times and build again, a strong, productive society. Hope for our children, and for our grandfathers. There is hope for a solution to all that ails us. There is hope, that at the end of the day, we may rest, free and secure under the protective wing of our diverse nation.

All of that hope must be a heavy load for our new president to carry. I applaud his sincerity, and ambition to conquer so many demons. But as capable and willing he may be to take on these daunting tasks, it is not all up to him. We must answer his call to rise to the occasion. To not allow the sacrifices of our ancestors to be in vain. To not teach our children to wait with their hands out in need, but rather to use them to build, produce, feed. Our kids are watching us, just as we are all watching this new administration. I believe that it is possible to leave them with something better. I hold hope that the passion, eloquence, humility and solidarity that exuded from the scene on inaugural day have a chance to carry us through.


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