Living Consciously

I'm with everyone else in being excited and proud and very much looking forward to tomorrow's Presidential Inauguration. In my experience the level of excitement for a new administration is unprecedented. Oprah said we are moving to a different level of consciousness in our country and I think the juxtaposition with Martin Luther King Day is very poignant.

I'm glad that for my grandchildren a president's skin color will not be an issue and I believe that going forward gender will not be an issue. (Which is a good thing since it just occured to me that being President would be the perfect job for Hope, she really likes being in charge, and maybe Justin as Vice-President, still asking why he always has to do what she says.)

I've gotten to meet a few presidents...well, meet may be a bit of an overstatement for shake hands, say hello and move on...but I got to do that with Presidents Eisenhower, Nixon and Johnson, and Nixon was before he was actually president. Nevertheless, it is a good memory even these many, many years later.

My point here is that as BIG as the inauguration is and all that it means, I'm wondering if there is something wrong with me that I am very content to be able to just watch it on television instead of wishing I could actually be there. All the news reporting about frigid weather, the largest security operation in U.S. history, the largest gathering of Port-o-Potties ever (1 per every 400-800 people), parking not being available any closer than Baltimore and most people only being able to see whats happening on a dozen or so Jumbotrons makes watching it on television with warm feet and a handy bathroom not seem so bad. I appreciate and admire those people who have fought to get tickets, sacrificed to pay to travel and are willing to sleep four to a bed to be there, I really do. I hope it is not a sign of age, but short of someone handing me inauguration tickets, an airline ticket and hotel reservations, I will be thrilled to have warm feet, a warm heart for all that is happening and a seat in front of the TV.

I wanted to add a flag background for this, but I just couldn't make it happen.