I witnessed Something Extraordinary.

"Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends - honesty and hard work, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism - these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths."
- President Barack Hussein Obama, Inaugural Address, January 20th, 2009

The sun was just peeking around the Washington Monument to warm me up a little as the proceedings Officially began. Throngs of people milled about, moving their legs to keep the circulation going, up on their tip toes to get a better view (mostly of the screen). Kids were up on shoulders, crowds parting slightly behind them. The level of excitement was high and unanimous. There were smiles everywhere. Volunteers greeted us as we crossed the Memorial bridge from Virginia with "Good Morning"s and "Welcome to DC"s. There's always something to see in DC for a political junkie like me. As we made Our way in, we passed peaceful, somber Arlington Cemetery, the strong, proud Iwo Jima Memorial, and the pensive and classic Lincoln Memorial, the steps of which an all star cast sang and spoke from two days prior. People were standing on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial to watch President Barack Obama be sworn in and speak, 1.9 miles away. And speak he did. He spoke to Christians, to Muslims, to Jews, to Hindus and to Non-believers. He spoke of feeding "hungry minds" and of science. He spoke of responsibility and service, curiosity and imagination, of respect and of a willingness to "extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist." He spoke of tolerance.

At times i felt like I finally understood church, not in the "religious" way that warren had thrust upon the crowd with one religion's "Our Father". I found myself bowing my head, while The President was speaking, Listening to every word. It brought me to tears more than once. The crowd was unlike anything I have been a part of or have seen, gathered together as One, to see a New President and feel the flood of emotions that came with him. From tears to laughter. From hope to reassurance. The crowd's diversity and inclusiveness was on display throughout. From a child in a shirt that read "The Future Starts Now" to an eldery African American man crying, perhaps further understanding what he has seen in his lifetime, alongside a young white woman crying for, not wholey, different reasons. 1.8 million people were there, and not one arrest. It was Truly Something.

More than anything else, it felt as if the clouds had parted, like the first sign of Spring, like something had shifted. It wasn't just Obama's words that "We are ready to lead ONCE MORE." or his thoughts on how "false the choice between our safety and our ideals" that signalled the end of the bush error. It was more than just his speech against "worn-out dogma"s. It was more than his rebuke of arguments about government being "too big or too small". My "mate" said it best, immediately following the Inauguration, "For the first time I feel like we're all Americans" Yep, and I'm a damn proud one at that.

Now, if we could just get rid of the tax evading accountant that's holding up the full sweep of appointments to the cabinet, we'll have a first hundred days like President Barack Obama's "Day One". Day two hasn't been that bad either actually.

That being said... What a Day! What a Speech! What a Crowd! What a Moment!

There are some pictures up from my adventure of a weekend here, if you care to take a gander.

This Land is Your Land!

GObama Go!!!

Other favorite quotes:
"What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them - that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply. The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works"

"The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our gross domestic product, but on the reach of our prosperity; on the ability to extend opportunity to every willing heart - not out of charity, but because it is the surest route to our common good."

"We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology's wonders"

"We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories."