I used to hate it when I was little and my mother would get weepy watching Leave it To Beaver, or one of my other favorite shows. Kids do NOT like to see their parents cry- it either makes them feel very squirmy due to all the emotion, or it scares them!
So I was glad that my teen boys Luke and Nicky did not witness my inaugural tears of emotion Sunday afternoon. I thought those two hours of speeches interspersed with well-chosen musical performances was everything my heart and spirit had been longing for, but didn’t know it.
I really loved the whole thing- I sang along to most of the songs, very “my generation” musically. It was so beautifully produced- seamless and balanced- could have been very sappy but for me at least, it wasn’t.
I realized how much I have missed my patriotism the past 8 years. It felt good to feel so good. There is something very distressing about feeling disdain and other negative emotions and judgments towards one’s President and administration. I was partly aware of the effects of this during Bush’s tenure, but much more so once I felt my love for my country return with Obama.
It was wonderful to see his beautiful family, so poised and yet accessible. I cried when they brought out the Bald Eagle, I cried when I saw Pete Seeger singing “This Land Is Your Land” with Springsteen, I cried when Beyonce sang “America The Beautiful”. The music connected me with the best of what our country stands for- and that I had been painfully disconnected from.
The energies are moving very very fast on the planet- things are changing and we have to find a way to evolve while forging new connections, and playing by new guidelines. I am somebody who tends to see many crises from the perspective that those events are what birth the new, and the fresh. I always knew that having Bush as our president for 8 years was going to lead to a powerful desire for something else in this country. And now we have it. Obama is not a miracle worker, and he’s not a savior. But speaking for myself, he is a man who allows me to reclaim my wish to belong, connect, pitch in, and make more of a difference. And to feel national pride. We Are One- even feeling that briefly filled me up with great joy.
I am happy to reclaim my patriotism and I feel truly blessed to live in this time where everything as we have known it is shifting. I am hopeful and I have more faith than fear. I can’t wait to watch it all unfold.
Love and blessings to all of us-
xox
Lisa
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