Oh, Happy Day! Our too long national nightmare is--finally--over! Barack Obama is about an hour away from taking the oath of office and becoming the 44th President of the United States. For the first time in eight years, I think the light at the end of the tunnel may not be an on-coming train after all.
And shame on me for not immersing myself in inauguration coverage, but I don't want to burn out or suffer overload. Sometimes the most momentous occasions are best experienced in quiet reflection. The image I'm taking away from all the festivities so far is that of Obama standing in front of the Lincoln Memorial, delivering his pre-inaugural remarks in the same place Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., gave his "I Have A Dream" speech. "Will The Circle Be Unbroken" indeed.
I don't know if it was the perfection of symbolism, the television lighting, the time of day, or the HD signal, but the image was breathtakingly crisp and sharp. I am thankful that such things still move me and still matter to me, for they embody my image of America as the beacon of hope for all the world.
Underneath my analytical exterior, I am a hopeless romanticist. I do not apologize for it, nor am I ashamed of it. It's the core of my being. It is my strength. It tempers the often cruel conclusions to which my analytical bent can lead me.
On the other hand, it can make me giddy, and that's why I am glad I have my analytical abilities, too. Balance matters. This day for me symbolizes the return of balance to our public order. I am positively giddy about that!
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