Hi Everyone,
This is an odd request that I've never made before, but I honestly feel it's the day before a new beginning in America. I have never felt so much excitement, joy, giddiness, awareness of past history, awareness of making history, and self-reflection in America before.
I've been verbally collecting stories about election day and asking those going to the inauguration to tell me all about it, but I realize that I want more.
This is such an epic event in our nation's history, and such an epic event for us Americans, for Americans abroad, and for those of other nationalities, that I'd like to hear from everyone your thoughts and/or your stories about the election, about Obama, about the inauguration.
I can collect these stories into a blog to share them with everyone interested. I've heard so many wonderful stories from spontaneous acts of joy and community on election day, to the new feeling of goodness as an American abroad, to strangers exchanging stories on subways, to wanting to share this day with our children, to feelings of true acceptance now for mixed race people in America, that I want to capture this moment that we can savor it in all the hard days that lay ahead. I also want to keep this for our kids, that they realize how far we've come and how far we're going.
To start us thinking, here's some stories I've heard so far:
* A friend of mine was in China on election night. She said that she was in a bar popular with expats when a man started walking around carrying an American flag. Concerned about the possibility of violence, my friend was ready to leave when the man stopped and announced: "I'm the owner of this bar. Tonight, Americans have taken back their country. I've ordered champagne for everyone!"
* A friend in Seattle on election night said that once Obama was announced the winner, her neighbors had a spontaneous block party, and everyone walked to everyone else's houses to celebrate.
* A UK friend who works with autistic teenagers said that one of the teenagers' reactions to the US election was "Now I feel safe".
* Stories of Americans abroad no longer pretending to be Canadian.
* Person after person after person saying they never thought they'd see this in their lifetime.
* Soledad O'Brien (a newscaster) saying her 6yo daughter was so surprised that there had never been a black president before. "Really Mommy?" she asked incredulously. "Really??". **
* Inaugural viewing parties occurring all over the country; people are actually paying $5 to watch it at a basketball arena here in Oakland; paying to watch something they can see for free in their living rooms, but they want to be with other people when this happens.
* Volunteer groups saying they are getting record numbers of volunteers today (MLK Day) due to Obama's call to service.
It feels like America is uniting again as we are calling on 'our better angels' as Lincoln would say.
It feels like how life after 9/11 should have been. After 8 years of the administration calling upon and rewarding the worst in us (rampant self-interest and greed), the best of us is coming out and we're hearkening to our better days with Obama channeling the greats like Lincoln, FDR, MLK and JFK.
I keep thinking back to a story I heard last week not of the inauguration or anything Obama-related but of the miraculous plane crash into the Hudson River. One of the passengers on a ferry that picked up the survivors from the icy waters said that the commuters on the ferry all joined together donating their own clothing to the freezing crash survivors, donating their cellphones and dialing the phone numbers themselves because the survivors' hands were still frozen from the waters, then holding the surivors' hands in their own to keep them warm. That image of strangers holding strangers' hands stays in my mind as we enter this new era from 'yes we can' to 'we are one'.
Please reply back with your reactions, stories, comments. Reply just to me or reply all. I look forward to hearing from you.
Thank you,
Adrienne
PS: And if I missed anyone on this list, feel free to forward.
**on a side note, the color-blindness of our children. a couple quick personal stories to share on that topic:
* Kimi and Nicole describing someone at their school. "Is their skin tan or brown? do they have medium brown hair or dark brown hair"?
* Kimi watching the movie "Holiday Inn" with me and when the black face Lincoln holiday scene happens, she looks at it with 'what-the-h***' expression; if the actors painted themselves in purple and yellow polka dots, and jumped around on pogo sticks, it would make as much sense to her. (and yes, Kimi knows she's half black :-) )
* my kids not reacting to the Obama win with "omigosh, never in my lifetime" but "of course Obama won. he's the better candidate".
(I'm not saying we're free of racism now, but we're a lot further now than ever before. ;-) )
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