On interesting stuff in the world

Saturday, January 05, 2008

Obama

People of my age can vaguely remember John F. Kennedy. He was young and boyish for a president and had Irish charm. He smiled naturally. One day I found my mother weeping in front of our TV set. The president was shot. I couldn't understand why my mother had been in love with someone she had never met. I was scared that day. Months later my father was watching a talk show and I asked him what it was about. He said they were talking about the JFK assassination. I said, "What, after all this time?" In 1969 Neil Armstrong walked on the moon and people said we had met Kennedy's challenge to send a man to the moon and return him safely to Earth.

Some people inspire other people. The people feel good about themselves and their country. They think that they can do extravagant things like going to the moon.

Barack Obama is young and boyish for a president and has Kenyan charm. He has an unforced smile. He makes me feel good about myself and my country. And I long to feel the way it felt when Kennedy was president and our country had a hero.

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