Teesee's Town: Remembrances of President Barack Obama’s inauguration

Inauguration Fever–And I’ve got it and I can’t seem to shake it! The symptoms, which are extremely contagious, are mostly manifest in emotional tears. Tears of joy. Tears of pride. Tears of happiness. Tears of hope.

Inauguration Fever–And I’ve got it and I can’t seem to shake it! The symptoms, which are extremely contagious, are mostly manifest in emotional tears. Tears of joy. Tears of pride. Tears of happiness. Tears of hope. Tears of inspiration. Just plain tears at just the mere thought of what was going to happen and what has happened. Traveling to Washington, D.C. for the inauguration ceremony of Barack Obama as the 44th President of the United States and the first African American was indeed the best of all worlds and the best gift I could ever give myself! It was a most remarkable time, an absolutely awesome event! And I still get teary whenever I think of what I witnessed in my lifetime!

I made plans in September. I had faith early on that Obama was going to the White House with the love of his life, Michelle, and their two darling daughters, Sasha and Malia. I called two long-time buddies and former Chicagoans, Herwald (“Hal”) and Christine Morton, to reserve a space in their sprawling five-bedroom home in suburban Silver Spring, Md. (Chris and I are pals from college; Hal’s a retired senior foreign service officer from the U.S. Information Agency; and their son, Keith, is my godchild. I had joined them in June when Chris and Hal celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary.)

Washington, D.C. was magical indeed! I When I arrived at the airport with my friend, Janet Poole, I sensed immediately that what we were about to witness over the next six days would be an experience of a lifetime, one that, for me, could never, ever be duplicated. Folks of all races, colors, ethnicities and social and economic status seemed keenly aware that the next few days would be life-changing and life-altering.

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