Oh Obama

I was thinking back to President Obama’s Obama inaugural speech. Obama delivered a sobering speech with eloquence and humility. He looked into the crowd’s eyes and challenged us to stand up and take responsibility. Barrack Obama is the most important president to be elected in my lifetime. He takes office in a very critical point in America’s history. He has to be ready for the enormous challenges that await him; economy, war, environment, jobs, housing, healthcare. All issues that typically are a part of the candidate’s campaign platform. But this time is different. I believe the enormity of the challenges call for a leader with unwavering commitment to solving the issues instead of the usual lip service. I truly believe Obama is the right man, at the right time. He will need the help of all Americans. We must all take greater responsibility going forward with the same enthusiasm as was demonstrated during the presidential campaign. If we face each challenge with the same passion, energy and hope then we will overcome the current crisis and emerge a much stronger nation.

We have a great responsibility to come up with solutions to saving the earth and its depleting resources. Stephen Jay Gould, a paleontologist from Harvard once profoundly stated, “The earth does need us but we need the earth”. In the current version of the motion picture The Day the Earth Stood Still, the woman asks the alien, played by Keanu Reaves, “you said earlier that you came to save us”. “No, we came to save the earth, from the humans. I hope that our newly elected leaders start taking the environmental issues seriously. The evidence is overwhelming that if we do not act and change the way we live with respect to our environment then who knows what kind of planet our grandchildren will inherit.

Remembering a Lost One

I went to a funeral today. A dear friend recently lost her daughter in a car crash. It was a sad and yet beautifully moving service. The church was filled with many family and friends. She touched a lot of people. As family members read their good-byes, people wept. Some who were very close to the deceased young woman, wept with the greatest pain. I can think of no other experience that is equal to the feeling of when a child is suddenly taken from us. It's the ultimate tragedy to lose one's child. Nothing else matters at a time like this. Nothing. Anything outside of this moment of pain is insignificant.

As the priest read from scripture, I turned to my daughter and held on to her hand tightly. I remembered her as a young child with a wonderfully wide open smile and twinkle in her eye. Now she is a beautiful young woman with a life full of opportunity and hope ahead. She still has that wonderful smile and twinkle in her eye but with a growing, mature confidence that will guide her through life's journey. I look forward to sharing in her journey.

I believe that "things" happen for a reason. There are life lessons presented to us daily, some more profound than others. The funeral today re-emphasized the lesson that we should live to the fullest each day, as if it was our last. We should be grateful for life and not waste the gift. And more importantly tell your family and friends how much you love them, because you never know when its their time to go home to God.