Wednesday, November 5, 2008

Obama 2008!

I am profoundly moved by the results of the election last night. When I was watching Obama's acceptance speech I was in tears.

It is amazing that such radical changes have occurred in our lifetime. One of the announcers on the BBC coverage last night mentioned that Robert Kennedy predicted 40 years ago that a black man could become president within 40 years. It seemed impossible then, but it's happened.

I have been reading Obama's biography on Wikipedia, and also that of his wife and his mother. What an amazing family and an amazing story! Reading about his mother, Stanley Ann Dunham, almost had me in tears again. She was a feminist, an activist, earned a PhD, worked to help the impoverished, and died of cancer at the age of 51. An amazing woman. It is very sad that she did not live to see her son's political career. It's very sad that his grandmother died before the election too.

My cousin Terry said she has confidence that "his advisers will be the best caliber." He's a very intelligent man who appears to exhibit remarkably sound judgment; I, too, have confidence he will choose well.

I have great hopes for the coming years, but I also recognize that this country is like a giant ship and it is not possible to make it change course rapidly. And we can't forget the turmoil in other parts of the world, some of which occurred at the hands of our current administration, and which will not be easily quelled.

Obama has a daunting array of challenges ahead, as does the entire country. But last night was a brilliant start.