Time to go to work

Everyone in America had a different experience this November fourth. For a hopeful majority, that experience was connected by a triumphant thread of hope. For many of us the climax of the day was an amazing catharsis and as the press has been so fond of pointing out, a crushing referendum on the Bush administration. For an unfortunate few the day ended with a fear inspiring tangle. A black man became the 44th President of the United States of America.
In my opinion, the day is best seen through the lens of the change motivated prior to that magnificent moment when Barack Obama became the President-Elect of the most powerful nation in the world. Everyone saw things through the tint of their own experiences.
Many people, some for the first time decided to be the change that they wanted to see. They decided to to vote for the candidate of their choice. He asked for more. They reached into their pockets and dug as deeply as they could. Still, he had the audacity to ask for more. So we spoke to our kids and parents. We knocked on doors and called complete strangers (many who weren't too pleased). The man to whom we were pinning our hopes sent us an email thanking us sincerely – and then asked for even more. What more could he want from us? We dug deeper and we walked farther.
You could see the change in the group of volunteers that flew to Columbus, Ohio from London, England – yes, from England, to walk door to door on a brisk November morning to get out the vote. You could see it in the young woman who tried and failed to get a leave of absence from her job to come help – so took her own vacation to stand outside a voting precinct to encourage people to stay in line (which thankfully didn't materialize) and exercise their right to vote. How about the estimated 12.7 million first time voters who made such a huge contribution to the outcome of the election?
The real promise brought to the country in the last two years isn't simply in the rise and November triumph of a candidate of change. It's in the change he's motivated in all of us. Over the last two years, we've seen the absolute best that humanity has to offer. People have, in too many ways to list, sacrificed. They've done it for their family and friends. They've done it for themselves. They've done it for their children. We all had our reasons, but what we've done we done for us all. People united to change the world and there aren't many greater sacrifices to make than giving of yourself for the good of all.
So the votes have been counted, and history has been made. It's all over and we've won. Except, people are suffering in our country in numbers we haven't seen since the great depression. Our friends and our neighbors, some of us are on the brink of being turned out of our homes. Our sons and daughters are embroiled in what the voting majority have decided is an unjust war. The USA has fallen from is place as a beacon of stability and esteem in the eyes of the of the world. That's a lot of pressure on the President-Elect. History has shown that it's tough enough to be the first black, well – anything.
So – believe it or not, Barack Obama is sure to come calling again. And again. And again. We'll be called upon time and again throughout his turn across the worlds stage to support the ideals we've embraced. We'll need to remain engaged and embrace civic engagement and service to our fellowman. It falls on us to rise above our differences and prejudices and follow our fresh-faced leader into a new era. We've heard it a hundred ways a thousand times, faith without works is dead. It's time to go to work.