Making History

Tomorrow is an exciting day in history as we witness the swearing in of our new president, Barack Obama. It marks a great milestone for Americans, some of whom refused to let an African American into a school, let alone 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

That we have come this far is a great testament to the willingness of most people to expand their world view and let go of old prejudices and biases.

Not that everyone has done so. I still hear comments that make me stop and check the calendar to make sure we are not back in 1950. But, thankfully, the people who still hold so rigidly to the stereotypes and misconceptions about people different from them are becoming more and more of a minority themselves.

And because of that, America will have its first African American president. Not that everyone who voted for him did so because it was an opportunity to seat a black man. I know I certainly didn't. I voted for him because he was the best person for the job, in my opinion, and the fact that he was also on the threshold of making history was an added benefit.

I hope as we move forward that Obama receives the support he needs from Congress and the general public. And I hope that every American can mark the day, Tuesday, January 20, 2009, in some special way.

Here in my little corner of the Piney Woods of East Texas, we are going to have an Inaugural Bash, where we will gather to watch the festivities from Washington and celebrate.