President Obama!

Every once in awhile, I’m struck by just a certain bias in the media – in particular that the US Presidential election has been splashed all over the news throughout the world for at least the past year, when it’s doubtful that any other election (whether that of a country in the developed or developed world) would receive similarly extensive coverage either abroad or in America. I understand all the reasons and arguments for why this is so, it’s just that every now and then it feels like it’s a little too much. And then there are times when this is the farthest thing from my mind. Like last night, when TBC’s live broadcast of inauguration day started at 6pm (10am EST) and was still going on when I left my neighbor’s house around 9pm. Seeing the camera pan out over that enormous crowd on the National Mall, I couldn’t help but feel that I would have loved to be there, to be part of that moment, along with so many other Americans. I shared in the moment in my own – and no less memorable – way though. With Everbright (my neighbor’s 7 year old daughter) perched in the chair next to me, I watched Obama make his entrance and then couldn’t help but laugh a little when Everbright, momentarily distracted from playing games on my phone by the fanfare, looked at the tv and then turned to me, her big eyes even rounder than usual.
“He’s black?!?” she asked, “I thought he was white!”
“Not only that,” I replied … “do you know where his father was born?”
“Nooo”
“Kenya!”
“Joking!!! Nuh uh! You’re joking!”

Of course, its not just his heritage that makes his election so exciting and inspiring, but I didn’t think her attention span was quite up to the task of listening to me babble on (plus, the ceremony was starting), so I left it at that. Sure enough, my phone proved to be more captivating than the tv that my eyes were locked on, and Everbright went back to playing its soccer game as the invocation, oaths of office, and performances got under way. The other English-speaking members of her family were away at school and on business, so when the President (!!!) stepped up to the podium to deliver his address, I was a little surprised to discover that membership in my Obama fan club had doubled (from one person to two…). One of the compound’s guards (who I don’t think speaks much English, although I could be wrong) was standing raptly at the window, watching the speech (he didn’t join me in my little dance of happiness at the end of the ceremony, but just having people around who were happy about the inauguration was enough for me!)