Our nine year old, Justin reluctantly went to bed on the evening of Election Day. He was so excited to see who would be the 44th President of the United States. When I woke him up the following morning, I asked him, “Guess who’s the next president of the United States?” He looked puzzled as he asked me, ” Why are you talking like it’s Christmas?!” I laughed and asked him again. His eyes shined as if he was opening a gift from Santa as he exclaimed, ” Mr. Obama!” He wasn’t cheering for a Wii or a new skateboard, but the new President to be. Who would have ever guessed a nine year old would react this way?
How wonderful it is to look to our future with hope, excitement and wonder of what is to come!!! He was not worried about the economy, increased taxes, the war in Iraq, or the costs of health care. He was in the moment… in pure, untainted innocence of what people of all walks of life can do when they use their voice… their minds… their spirit. He will always remember this day and how the human spirit still shines in the midst of doubt and fear. His joy was authentic and magnified with each cheer as it became louder and louder within seconds. All this at 7 am in the morning while he was still in his mismatched pajamas and tousled hair. “Woo-hoo!” he yelped at the top of his lungs, giggling on the floor. As his mom, this is one moment I will too not forget- my son literally shining more brightly than the sun that morning.
I still hear on the radio, on television, and even in line at the grocery store, the doubt in my neighbors’ voices… “What is going to happen with X, Y, Z? ” So much skepticism and it’s not even Day 2! Regardless of who you wanted to be elected as President, we now have a new one. Change is inevitable and change is frightening. Focusing on fear and doubt will only get you more fear and doubt. It’s the not knowing that is causing us this incredible stress. But, that is also the excitement, the anticipation, the wonder- if we allow ourselves to look at change in a positive light, just as we did when we were little at things that were new.
We need to get past the fear, doubt, worry about what these next four years will bring. We have to remember that our children watch and soak up everything we do, what we say, how we act, and how we think. They are so easily influenced by even our littlest gestures and words. All of this is conveniently stored away in our children’s subconscious and begins to slowly influence their behavior as they grow.
One of Ghandi’s most famous and now commonly used quotes is, “We must be the change we see in the world. ” ( This is my all time favorite one. ) We MUST be the example for our children. Be INTEGRITY. Be HONESTY. Be FAITH. Be OPEN-MINDED. Be GENEROUS. Be KIND. Be JOY. Be STRENGTH. Be LOVE. This is what we want for our children so they may hopefully be leaders of our future, right? We MUST BE THIS and MORE for our children.
So, please remember during this historic era we are indeed entering, Henry David Thoreau’s succinct and insightful message “Things do not change. We change.”
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