today is a new day. a historical day. a day filled with hope. a day that marks the beginning of a new era and era of change. barack obama will be the 44th President of the United States of America. he is the first African American elect and the first (I think) to successfully use the power of the internet to mobilize, inform and empower the masses. his campaign was powerfully effective and his strategy and thougthfulness throughout the process remarkable. i don’t care who you are, or what your political affliations and ideas are, this is a historical and profound moment in our country. just stop and think for a moment how far we have come.

“This election had many firsts and many stories that will be told for generations. But one that’s on my mind tonight’s about a woman who cast her ballot in Atlanta. She’s a lot like the millions of others who stood in line to make their voice heard in this election except for one thing: Ann Nixon Cooper is 106 years old.

She was born just a generation past slavery; a time when there were no cars on the road or planes in the sky; when someone like her couldn’t vote for two reasons — because she was a woman and because of the color of her skin.

And tonight, I think about all that she’s seen throughout her century in America — the heartache and the hope; the struggle and the progress; the times we were told that we can’t, and the people who pressed on with that American creed: Yes we can.

At a time when women’s voices were silenced and their hopes dismissed, she lived to see them stand up and speak out and reach for the ballot. Yes we can.

When there was despair in the dust bowl and depression across the land, she saw a nation conquer fear itself with a New Deal, new jobs, a new sense of common purpose. Yes we can.

When the bombs fell on our harbor and tyranny threatened the world, she was there to witness a generation rise to greatness and a democracy was saved. Yes we can.

She was there for the buses in Montgomery, the hoses in Birmingham, a bridge in Selma, and a preacher from Atlanta who told a people that “We Shall Overcome.” Yes we can.

A man touched down on the moon, a wall came down in Berlin, a world was connected by our own science and imagination.

And this year, in this election, she touched her finger to a screen, and cast her vote, because after 106 years in America, through the best of times and the darkest of hours, she knows how America can change.

Yes we can.

America, we have come so far. We have seen so much. But there is so much more to do. So tonight, let us ask ourselves — if our children should live to see the next century; if my daughters should be so lucky to live as long as Ann Nixon Cooper, what change will they see? What progress will we have made?

This is our chance to answer that call. This is our moment.” – Barack Obama’s Victory Speech

powerful words. and an insightful reflection on what was and what is to come. i along with many others am proud today. proud to be an American. and i am excited. and hopeful. hopeful and confidant in where we are and the future that lies ahead. i think we are at a good place in American and in politics today and i am anxious to see how the next four years pan out.

we must remain involved, supportive, active and vigilant. and we must pray. pray for direction, wisdom, peace and grace over our country and our government. and our new president.