First, I’ve made a New Year’s resolution to be a better blogger. If I can’t keep up with this sucker how the heck am I going to keep up on a dissertation.
That said, my probelm is that I over-think my posts and, hence, they never get written. Those of you who know me will say, “What? You? Over-think?” Quite.
In that spirit I write here a non-pre-meditated blog entry (can I really use a hyphen twice like that?)
I sat in my living room this morning feeding Jo a jar of blueberries and apples trying to explain to her the significance of this day. I told her she would not remember sitting in her high chair and watching Obama be sworn in as her mother slobbered and slurped over the tray. But I will tell her that she witnessed it with me.
I tried to explain to her that this moment would effect her life profoundly, I believe, for the better. I told her that 2009 was a huge shift in our family’s life. The inauguration drove home my hope that the cosmos/God/the goddess/fate has shifted suddenly in our lives. I also reminded her, as my friend Gil just posted, that the real hard work actually begins now. Words like sacrifice, responsibility, and perseverance will take on new meaning. But, like I think many Americans, those words have permeated much of my existence these last couple years. It’s comforting to hear those words spoken in a national context that doesn’t involve having a president pledge my support as a citizen for a cause I do not believe in.
Jo listened well, touching my face as I spoke between mouth-fulls of cereal and fruit, as if to say, “No worries, mama.” For her the inauguration was all about screams and excitement. She shrieked several times during the inaugural address. Of course, her favorite moments were the quartet and the chorus singing the national anthem. She was pretty damn stoked…so stoked she is refusing to eat or nap at the moment. Clearly Jo is already committed to Obama’s new ethic of responsibility and sacrifice.
“You’re the man Mr. President,” she says.
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