Today marks the 10th anniversary of the inauguration of our first African-American President, Barack Obama. [It is also the 2nd anniversary of the inauguration of Chaos wrought by the current president, but I will waste no more words on that.] In honor of that remarkable day, I am reposting the poem I wrote 10 years ago.
January 20, 2009
Today we gathered
at the crossroads of history,
Where the past meets the present
and the present, the future.
The Dunce was deposed—
ceremoniously, but firmly,
sent packing;
his Village no longer
missing its Idiot.
In his place,
a prince,
called Obama:
a young man,
vibrant yet old and wise
beyond all time,
stepped forward
to proclaim:
The past is past
but also our essential foundation.
The now,
a needful burden—
a stone in our shoe—
on the road to
the future.
Our Sacred Quest:
To reclaim the ideals
of our nation’s past;
To become the people
we are meant to be.
To fulfill our
Manifest Destiny
of Life, Liberty,
and the Pursuit of Happiness.
Awakened
from the long nightmare
of fear and confusion
imposed by The Dunce,
who worked dark magic
with smoke and mirrors,
secrecy and lies,
deceit and sleight-of-hand
to rob our land
of money, jobs,
prosperity and hope,
and precious human lives,
We have pinned our hopes
on Obama,
made him our savior,
our prince,
The answer to our prayers
(Surely—
God laid His hand
on this man).
But wisely,
in truth,
he has held up to us
the mirror of truth,
reminding us that
it is not he
but we
who must rebuild
our selves,
our nation,
and our world
to a state of grace
and goodness.
In gratitude,
the people came
by the millions
to the National Mall,
stood for hours
in the biting winter chill,
or witnessed the great moment,
by the billions,
via electronic means,
and in a roar
heard round the globe,
ordained Barack Obama
(The New Hope)
The 44th President
(the First Black)
of the United States of
America.
baltimoreblackwoman 