I AM . . .
By: Editor | January 22, 2009 | Category: Fun
This essay marks the final text installment in our inauguration coverage. For a compilation of photos and videos, check out our Flickr photostream and YouTube account. Thank you for your comments and participation. We hope you enjoyed following our coverage as much as we enjoyed bringing it to you.
I am a proud witness of history. My husband and I attended the inauguration of our 44th president on Tuesday. It was an experience I will long remember for its cold weather, its beautiful music, its simplicity, and its monumental import.
I am lucky. We arose early Tuesday morning and caught the Metro before the crowds got too bad. We had a seat all the way in to town. We had tickets for the silver section, and although we stood in a line at least five blocks long, we only had to wait about 30 minutes before they opened the security gate. We passed through in mere minutes and eventually worked our way up to the Reflecting Pool just west of the Capitol. We stood right next to a woman from Las Vegas who’d waited since 4:30 a.m. to get in.
I am delighted that America takes its national celebrations as opportunities to revel in the arts. I will long remember the music I heard. A children’s choir singing of hope for the future, peace in our time, America the beautiful. A military band playing an 18th century Army marching song arranged by a 20th century American composer, Sousa’s marches, an achingly beautiful arrangement of “Amazing Grace”—iconic, American pieces all. The audience listening with rapt attention to the haunting strains of John Williams’ piece, “Air and Simple Gifts,” especially composed for the occasion.
I am in awe. On Tuesday, a simple ceremony shifted the leadership of our nation from one man to another in just 35 words. And as the oath of office was taken, a new era began. I wish I had been alive when Dr. King and the Freedom Riders and the Civil Rights workers fought for the freedoms of everyone so I could fully realize what it means for America and the world that we have an African-American president. I wish I personally knew the sense of triumph that swelled to cheers of “O-ba-ma” from so many African-Americans in the crowd with me on Tuesday.
I am hopeful. President Obama’s inaugural address was filled with soaring words of a new vision for America mixed with a sense of history’s weight and the challenge of working to make that new vision a reality. We humans are reluctant and slow to change, even if we know the change is good for us. I hope that the buoyant spirits which brought millions to brave a cold January morning, to wait in long lines with good will, to travel far distances in poor economic times, will convert into the energy and determination to do the hard work of making America a better place than it was on January 20th when history was made.
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