Unexpected

Unexpected for me this morning was the emotion I felt when I finally convinced my three year old to let me change the channel from Handy Manny to the Presidential Inauguration. As soon as I turned to the channel covering the Inauguration and I saw the massive crowds of people chanting "Obama, Obama" and seeing all the thousands of little American Flags waving in the air, I felt instantly proud. Proud to live in America. Proud that our country has moved forward from our not-so-pretty past. You see, no matter what your politics, no matter who you voted for in this election, what our country has done by electing Barack Obama cannot be denied. We have overcome. It gives me a feeling of fullness. Full of pride and joy that we are moving beyond the age of prejudice. I don't mean to sound "Pollyanna" about it. I know it still exists. I know it still haunts many people on a daily basis. But all we can do from our past is move forward. And electing Obama as our leader is a sure sign of that forward motion, and it makes me very hopeful for our future and for the future of my children. Slavery and segregation will always be a a stain on this country's historical quilt, if you will, but what better way to put it to rest than to elect an African-American as our leader. Today, I am proud to be an American. I am proud that I live in a country that gives me the ability to choose my leaders. And I am proud that we, as a country, have taken a giant leap forward in leaving our tainted past behind. And I hope that we can keep moving in that direction for the sake of my children and their children and so on...