“I stand here today humbled by the task before us,” he said. Not the task before me, but before us. This attitude of inclusion may be the key to longed-for change in the United States.
There is so much optimism in the chant, “Yes, we can”; so much joy in the faces of those who listened mesmerized by words of hope and challenge. I didn’t expect to feel emotional but here I am. It’s hard not to get caught up in the whirlwind of anticipation that is so much a part of this Inauguration Day.
MUSINGS 
I know what you mean. I listened while imagining the first woman, the first Latina, the first Native American… it was an exciting moment. I hope I live to see the day where race isn’t an issue. We’ll swear in our leaders without giving their ancestry a second thought.
I hope for that day, too. As much as yesterday was history-making for the USA, the constant focus on Obama’s background said to me that people are still way too aware of such differences. Canadians aren’t much farther ahead either, as evidenced by the hoopla when Michaëlle Jean was sworn in as the first black and Haitian to be Governor General of Canada. Of course she wasn’t the first woman but the third in that post… and we’ve already had a woman Prime Minister, so I suppose we’re somewhat ahead in that department. But still…..