I'll leave debate analysis to the pundits and bloggers. You know what I think anyway. And since he looked so presidential, for the first time I am allowing myself to imagine: President Obama.
I read a comment on a blog a few weeks ago and it spoke to me so profoundly that I saved it, although I have no idea who wrote it. The commenter said: "When you look at the picture of Barack Obama's parents, you can see that these two people don't belong together. They came together to do one very important thing--create this extraordinary person, Barack Obama."
At another dark time in our history when we desperately needed healing, our country was blessed with a man of destiny: Abraham Lincoln. Maybe it's leftover sixties liberal idealism, but I believe that Obama could also be a man touched by fate, with the capacity to heal this country--not only at home, but to present a new face of America abroad. To show the world that America's moral authority is back on track; that we have humility and hope rather than aggresssion and arrogance; that we are a country of peace and not war.
I enjoy the moment of reflection and pride and hope. While it lasts. But when things seem to be going well, something else often seems to happen: I worry.
This used to be a constant pattern in my life when I could not seem to accept the idea that things might go smoothly. Hand in hand, joy and fear came along during the early days of my first marriage, the births of my two children, my second marriage to V.
I thought I've evolved; but as the polls started going up recently , I began to sense a familiar nagging worry. And then, after the debate which seems to portend an Obama victory, fear speaks up: Things are great for Obama now. But there is so much hatred in the world. What if something bad happens?
My husband V doesn't worry like this, and he thinks this attitude is programmed into my Jewish DNA. Maybe he's right.
And maybe this is an appropriate time to think about this. Tonight begins Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the year in the Jewish calendar. It's the day when Jews atone for their sins, and ask to be inscribed in the Book of Life for the coming year--an opportunity to pray that Barack Obama's name is included, instead of just worrying about it.
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