America is back

I have been struggling to find the words to describe my feelings about this historic election. No matter what you think of Obama's politics, you cannot look at his story, listen to his message, know where this country has been, and not be touched by the sentiments. It transcends politics. This is the America that we have always claimed to be, an America where anything is possible. His victory alone begins to break down the walls that divide us and restore the American dream. It begins to reposition Americans as citizens of the world in this global economy and helps us regain our respect worldwide. Not only did Obama win, but the people of the United States of America won.

America let me down in a major way 4 years ago, and up until the very end of this election, I did not trust that some of the same people that re-elected Bush would go for Obama. I understand that the challenges we face are not all the government's making, but the failure to respond to those challenges is the result of a broken politics. After Bush won, I actually cried for the fate of this country. I remember having a strong sinking feeling that Americans did not know what they had chosen and that we were digging ourselves deeper into a hole. I think that's a pretty accurate description of what actually happened. I have to give the Bush administration some credit, though, because their consistent incompetence set the table for this kind of transformational figure to arrive (too harsh?). The election results are emotional to me now, too, but for completely opposite reasons. This time, I feel empowered instead of helpless, optimistic instead of cynical, inspired instead of discouraged.

We are already proving that we are changing as a country, growing and evolving, striving for something better. This time, we chose a politics of hope and dignity over a politics of cynicism and fear. I hope that we truly are taking back the White House. Maybe this time, as we've already seen, anything can happen.