Barack Obama!

What a sense of pride I feel today … not just the pride in being an African-American, but mostly, the pride in being an American! As CNN’s Campbell Brown put it last night, “without the hyphen, just American!”

It’s a scene of beauty the confetti of faces that I see as the various angles are captured of this mega crowd of people poised to witness “change” often breaking into the simple, yet poignant chant that permeated a dynamic campaign to victory … YES WE CAN!

When Obama rose to prominence in Illinois, I was entertaining on cruise ships and though I occasionally would catch CNN while on board, there was very little talk of him on an international level. I do remember being home in Chicago during one of my vacations and seeing campaign signs with this strange name “Obama.” I, like many others, thought the person attached to this name had to be a Muslim, and if a Muslim, then probably a bit radical. Of course, this is a stereotype that I’m ashamed to admit that I subscribed to, but I did. Then I see the person behind the name and in looking at this straight laced, nerdy man, radical was the last thing I thought about him.

Illinois Senator … U.S. Senator … Presidential Candidate …

Honestly, I have no idea when all these milestones in Obama’s political career took place, but when I realized that November, 2007 would mark the end of my last ship contract and that I would actually be home during an election year, I started to pay attention to those vying for my vote.

The choice to vote democratic was kind of a no brainer considering the current state of affairs under a republican leadership, and it didn’t take long before the democratic field narrowed to just two … Clinton and Obama. It wasn’t until I surfed across Oprah’s endorsement of Obama that I really started to lean towards him and ultimately decided to cast my vote for CHANGE!

As it turned out, many Americans voted for change and elected Barack Obama as our 44th president. As he is sworn in today, the DREAM becomes a reality in all of us, and under President Obama’s leadership, it’s up to all of us to right the wrongs that have lead us to these challenging times.

“In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of short-cuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted -- for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things -- some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labor, who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom.” - President Obama.