Reflections on the election of Barack Obama (November 5, 2008 - Tokyo)

How do I describe the day I witnessed the dawn of a new America? Is there any way to put down in words an accurate and true, earnest record of what I saw and experienced today? This day--and how I felt when the 2008 US Presidential election was called for Barack Obama--was almost too good, too overwhelming with joy that the system has been redeemed and faith in the process and power of the American voter's voice restored, that it's hard not to think that this hasn't all been just some remarkably vivid dream. But then, there was that speech, that speech that was so perfect in its realism. That speech in which he reminded us that though we have accomplished so much to get us this far, the real work is only just beginning. That speech that called us out for service to one another, sacrifice for one another, and a reminder that we are all each other's keeper.

Yes, we should be proud of how far we have come and all we had to do to get here; yes, we deserve a chance to revel and celebrate our success. But, lest we find ourselves forgetting what we all really got into this fight for, Barack reminded us that this day--this amazing day--is really just a chance at change, not change itself. True, real, lasting, effective, life-altering, life-bettering change will only come once we commit to following through on the incredible journey that we've only just started on in these 21 months.

This is not the end of an era, but rather the beginning of one; an opportunity for us all--not just Americans, but all world citizens--to look inward and believe in our own abilities to effect progress as much as we believe in his. Like he said, this race was won not on the strength of the party or the Washington political machine, but by the minutes, seconds, dimes, and dollars donated by millions and millions of people around the world who believe in the movement Obama represents, not just in the man we see on television.

Yes, today was just the beginning, just the start of more hard work and dedication to the cause of each other... and I, for one, have never been more ready to get to work. After all, nothing could be easier than to believe and have faith in the good in all of us. Today, and all that it represents, made that belief possible.

More thanks than I can express go out to each person who cast his or her vote for Barack Obama and for having faith in the America and the people that we can and will become. Thank you, thank you, thank you.