The Inauguration of a lifetime
He is the 44th president, 47 years-old and fourth youngest president to be elected.
He is following in the footsteps of many inspiring leaders before him, but as for the first time a president is not just making history he is changing history for the better.
Hundreds of years in the making, and a moment no one will forget. Today is the day Barack Obama swears to God and country to not only lead the world, but save it.
During times of despair and an unknown future Barack Obama has a difficult road ahead. A road few envy, but many worry he will either flounder or fortify.
He asked us to believe in change, believe in him and believe in ourselves. One man won the hearts of the world by saying little more than those words.
He motivated the world to believe and gained a 78-percent approval rating coming into office, more than most presidents before him.
He stood his ground and revived the spirits of Martin Luther King Jr. and President Abraham Lincoln to carry out his message of hope to the masses.
Two million people waited by the reflecting pool and all the monuments built by slaves for a glimpse or word from America’s first elected African American president.
Then it came. He accepted the oath into office and “A New Birth of Freedom,” echoed through the minds of millions as he addressed the nation with words of encouragement….
“On this day we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, on this day we come to proclaim an end to petty grievance and false promises, we remain a young nation and the time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit…..the God given promise that all are equal all are free and all deserve a chance to preserve their full measure of happiness.”
“We must dust ourselves and remake again the working of America.”
“Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism they knew that our power grows from them just as our cause and the tempers in qualities of humility and strength. We can meet those new threats that demand even greater quality and new nations with all friends and former foes we will not apologize for out way of life.”
“Know that your people will judge you on what you build not what you destroy.”
“As we consider the roads that unfold before us, we remember those brave Americans who have something to tell as the fallen heroes who lie in Arlington whisper throughout the ages a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves. It is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all. It is the kindness to take a stranger when the levies break, it is the firefighter courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke…..”
Consumed by his color, inspired by his honesty and hanging on his every word, Obama once again hypnotized the audience with his strong and poetic speech, but as President Bush leaves the White House, one can’t help but wonder what is next?
Will out new president live up to his promises? Will the world truly change? Will women be seen as equal? Will homosexuals be seen as equal? Will our current economic worries change for the better? So many questions, and not enough answers, but if history has taught us anything it is that time will only tell and today will live forever as the day the world embraced an African American man as their leader of the free world.
3 years ago