Tuesday, January 20, 2009

SWEET LIBERTY!

WARNING: This blog entry is sappy. If you don’t much care for “syrup-y sweet” patriotism served with hot fudge, sprinkles, whipped cream, and a cherry on the top then I suggest you stop reading immediately and return to this blog on Friday. Don’t say I didn’t warn you….

Today is a special day not only for Americans but for the world. It is a day which reflects the liberties of an American people who have the right to choose their leaders and to be able to honor a President who gracefully transitions the power of the office to another. It is a day for the world to consider how “doing business with America” may change a little.

Today, our nation will pause to revel in the pomp and ceremony of the Presidential Inauguration, as it has done for the past forty-three American Presidents.

Aside from the obvious, this day is historical. It symbolizes change. It symbolizes hope. It symbolizes a new day in politics for our country.

Sometimes I think we take for granted the fact that we can choose our leaders and also to choose to disagree with them. No matter which candidate we supported over the past 18 months, we all, now, must move forward with respect for the office and the things that are being legislated from it.

Last November, when I returned to the states from my trip to the Bahamas, a woman (a Bahaman native) was on our flight. She was travelling to this country just to be a witness to the election. She told us that she just wanted to “feel a part of it”. She could not vote. But she wanted to experience the event, first hand, within the borders of the United States of America.

Life is most certainly sweet when you stop to consider that we live in a place which despite its recent bumps and bruises still affords us the rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Today, of all days, is the day to remember these freedoms and to honor the hundreds of thousands of fellow Americans who have altered or given their lives in order to maintain them.

God Bless America!

(Senator Barack Obama enjoys Blue Bunny Mint Chip Ice Cream in a waffle cone at the Blue Bunny Ice Cream Parlor in Le Mars, Iowa, during the campaign)

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