There is no question. Everyone I talk to is excited about the new President. Even those who didn’t vote for him, in general see the historic nature and significance of this turn of world events. And it is a world event. People everywhere look to this election as a point of inspiration, reminding themselves of the feeling that anything is possible. And that’s why it changes things.
Young people now feel they may have a role in the political—no longer “waiting on the world to change.”* The texts I received on election night from my young friends said things like, “Let’s continue to lead America in a better direction!” and “America believes in hope over fear—thank goddess for it!” After decades of fear-based politics, there is a true and meaningful sigh of relief for this “better” direction. Young people aren’t naïve though; they know the feeling of what happens may turn on a dime. Fear has been the mode of the realpolitik for so long. Even with a Democratic majority in Congress, the politics of competition, special interests and party may still significantly rule the day.
The difference that Obama makes however, reminds me of the best role of a leader, and really the best role of government. It is to inspire—to get people to believe in the coordinated effort of individuals, and to assure them that the government will either help the cause, or get out of the way. What the people want should be what the government wants. But the truth is, “we know that the fight ain’t fair,”* and that the difference will be how we feel about what is available to us in this new direction. The myth of an apathetic citizenry should be dissolved by the overwhelming turn-out for this election, but we must be careful that we do not again accept that lie as the hidden reality behind our choices.
I’m counting on President Obama’s grandmother. She chose to leave this plane the day before the election. What a interesting coincidence. Or is it? I believe that our higher selves have much to do with the time of our birth and our death, and even if that’s not a concept you’ve ever thought of before, come on, Obama’s grandmother dying the day before the election! That’s not cosmic nihilism at play; that’s cosmic meaning at work. She must have known that she could watch over him (and us) better from the other side. She must have felt how much he needed to let go of the past, to feel the turning point between worlds that this moment is, to best serve in the healing role that he has been offered. And she must have felt what she could do, to join us, in guiding this new leader to define a better day in America.
I know what grief does. It makes you realize the importance of every moment you have. It makes every decision feel like the last decision you will ever make. And that kind of clarity is what we need to pull our condition out of the downward-sloping spiral we have been on—with war, with the environment, with human rights and economic justice. We are on the razor’s edge of more catastrophes than I care to count. And a serious tone, a deep view of life and death, and a sober mind are what we need to find our way out of here. Our leaders won’t be able to do it all for us, but they can resolve to be a part of the solution, and not a further part of the problem. As Obama reminded us, “we are the ones we’ve been waiting for.” May we find it within ourselves to assume that the best outcome is possible, and to know that we do have help—that we have assistance from the world of the seen and the unseen, to make the change that is needed, for all our sakes.
*(thanks and credit to John Mayer’s lyrics in Waiting on the World to Change)
