"Pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and get to work"

I'm home sick today and so I was able to watch the inauguration of Barack Hussein Obama as president of the United States. That's our president's name and he is an African American. That still amazes me. That still moves me.

The self-proclaimed "skinny black kid" gave an amazing speech, one in which he spoke of the hard work ahead but also of the strength of the American people to face hard work. He spoke of our patchwork population, of our shared history, of our shared hopes. I was moved by his words and by his demeanor. I was moved by the crowd, by the music, by the history.

I know that Obama being sworn in will not right all wrongs, will not fix everything, will not change the way things are. But I think this is a new direction for our country. I know that change comes slowly but I also know that change comes. A woman as Speaker of the House, a black man as President...earlier in my life these would not have been possible. Now they are. Change is possible, change is necessary and I believe that change is on its way.