Frumpfighter

The night before Election Day my husband came to bed and said, “This night eight years ago we had a beautiful house we loved, we both had good, stable jobs and we were happy.” In a sense, with the exception of our son who was born in 2002, we had it all in November 2000.

Brian Ray/The Gazette President Barack Obama

Fast forward to November 2008 and we lived in a house half the size which we owe more than its value, we both had our share of employment ups and downs, and we continued to struggle financially as my husband pursues his masters degree in special education after being thrown out the businesses he started. Were we still happy? Let’s just say we’re happy we survived the past years with our marriage and sanity still intact.

The 2008 election provided us, as well as many Americans, a sense of hope and renewal. Barack Obama’s overwhelming win was a stark contrast to the drawn-out 2000 election which was ultimately decided by the Supreme Court. The sense of unity that our new President instructed us to have just didn’t seem natural.

Now I am not naïve or irresponsible enough to blame all of my maladies of the past eight years on the Bush administration. He didn’t cause my health problems or the changes in the newspaper industry. And I am of the belief that 9/11 would have happened when it did no matter who was President. As an American, I thank the Bush administration for the security it has provided us at home since that horrible day.   

But it is time for a change – in leadership and attitude. Throughout the primary season, Barack Obama was not my first choice. I thought he was too young and inexperienced and the “Yes We Can” chant seemed like transparent propaganda.  It wasn’t until the Democratic National Convention that I finally changed my mind and believed our country could thrive under his leadership.

Let’s face it – our country is a mess right now. With a tanked economy, drawn-out wars and a deterioration of the middle class, it’s not going to be a quick or easy fix. President Obama knows that and, hopefully, the American people will be patient.

Watching the inauguration, I got the feeling the tide is turning. Not just because of a new administration, but because of the reaction and attitude of the people. The emotion was evident on the faces of people of all races and age. We are ready to stand together and work hard to get our country back to its greatness.