The Inauguration

It wasn't until President Barack Hussein Obama took the oath of office to become officially the 44th President of the United States that it hit me. This is real. This is really real. I have had since November 4th to wrap my mind around this in theory. I have known for awhile that this day was coming. But this is the first time that the emotion of the moment overcame the logic. This is the first time that the tears flowed freely, that my heart felt full, but sad and disheartened. We have come so far.

I never thought in my lifetime, in my children's or grandchildren's lifetimes that this day would ever come, that we would ever live would to see it. I wanted to call my mother, my grandmother, my father, my grandfather. I wanted to sit with them and experience this momemt with them. But they have gone on and cannot sit here save in spirit. So my eyes watch for them, my heart feels for them. I hold pictures of them close to my heart and hope they feel it beneath the earth.

There is a man, a good man who lives in the White House now, who looks like my father, my brothers, my uncles, nephews, cousins, sons. There is a woman who lives in the White House who looks like me, who has daughters who look like mine and my granddaughters. There is a mother in law who looks so much like my mother that I had to take a second look and make certain that it wasn't mine returned. There is a family that I never thought I would see in the White House as a family.

I, the one who holds a 7 digit vocabulary find that I am speechless, voiceless. I can find no words to describe each and every emotion that I know I must be feeling. I do wonder what my parents, my grandparents and all of my ancestors would have felt. Disbelief. This is not the sort of evil, foul trick my mother would have allowed whitey to play on her. She was much smarter than that. This was some sort of false hope thing that they were trying to get her excited about so that they could use it to her her. My grandmother would have told her, "I told you so". My father would have been cautiously optimistic. I believe that I have been following his example. I believed once I saw that it was real. He and I were always the family pragamatist.

It's been hours and I still feel the tears burning my eyes. My face is still wet. My family is still amazed. They rarely see this me with this level of emotion. Afterall, I am a Capricorn. I play my hand close to my chest. But not today. Today I am transparent. I wear my emotions on my sleeve. Over and over and over and over resounding in my brain, the new mantra that won't go away.

President Barack Hussein Obama.