Expectations

As the satisfaction of this past Tuesday's election continues in both my mind and heart I now begin to question whether any one person can meet the expectations we have set for Barack Obama. I believe that due to Obama's heritage and his ability as an orator that people will be measuring him with a tall stick for very different reasons. Those who oppose him for his race are going to ask of him to be better than their own selves as we have in the past with the likes of Jackie Robinson, Thurgood Marshall, Sidney Poitier, and Colin Powell. Those who oppose him for his politics are going to judge him against their own beliefs without regard to the potential that these words and actions may have near and long term. Those who just want to see any man fail will never be able to enjoy the fact that for the first time in many years we have a leader that can inspire our people to be greater than we are today.

So back to my original question whether any one man can meet these expectations. The answer is no. It will take a dynamic leader like Obama with a lot of cooperation, keen observation, and effort from his own cabinet, the legislature, the American people, and the leaders of the world to enable him to begin to meet these expectations. I only hope that we provide him with our best so he can in return do the what is best for us. We also need to recognize that some things can be done in days, other in months, while many will take years or decades to complete. We need to turn away from our what have you done for me lately and immediate gratification stances to what is realistic today and more significantly what can you do for the next generation and those that follow.

We have to realize that we are at a point where our nation and the world is at a crossroad on whether our Earth and its people can survive the treatment we have given it. We also have to realize that things can change starting today even if we cannot measure the affects of our actions until years later. Hopefully we will give the same regard to our newly elected President.