...and I am not surprised. It goes without saying that this has been a tremendous, mind-bending, colossus week. Tuesday, November 4th 2008 will always go down in my mind as Juneteenth II, New Year's Day, The Rising of the Phoneix, the day America took the bull by the horn and rode it to slaughter.
As I watched Senator Obama become the first African-American President of the US of A, I as did many people across the world cried, jumped, prayed, praised, cried, clapped, hugged, cried, praised and prayed. It wasn't only that President-elect Obama and his team of intellectuals, community shakers, hopefuls, game-changers had broken through a thick, bolted glass ceiling, but that Americans of all ethnic backgrounds, beliefs and goals came together and voted for hope, voted for change, voted for a dream, voted for a collective vision, voted for humanity. Millions of people went to the polls believing that they were not only voting for change in their future, but also that of their fellow man. We voted "Yes We Can" to humanity. We voted "Yes We Can" to loving our neighbors, taking care of our global neighborhood. Taking care of one another. This act of love and of worship is truly divine, supernatural, and a symbol of promise.
Michael (my husband) and I always tumble into discussions about what is wrong with the planet, the nation, our neighborhood, our household and what we can do (with our miniature hands) to CHANGE the negative into the positive. I've always thought that one step would be for the governmen to create a mandatory national volunteer program (a bit different from Americorps, per say) , particularly one that could be adopted in the educational system as well as in corporate America. People helping one another and the planet, could become one of the greatest cornerstones for understanding in this country. What could be more a symbol of citizenship then helping your fellow man learn better, think better, understand better...restoring the planet so that we can continue to benefit from it? I mean, shouldn't students get educational credit for serving their community? Shouldn't it be mandatory for students to help their community grow? Shouldn't employees get tax breaks for volunteering? I think volunteerism is one of the biggest hammers for shattering ignorance. It forces people to use their hands to feed someone else and not just themselves and/or their immediate families. It makes people really understand that in one way or another we can only grow together -- This is what "one nation under God (God would love this idea) INDIVISIBLE..." means....
I have to admit that my husband and I are just formulating our plan to become volunteers in our community. We've been picking out programs -- i'm partial to helping people learn to read and write, accurately express their visions and ideas // Michael is partial to protecting and caring for animals and contributing to the benefit of keeping our planet beautiful through parks restoration and the like -- we agreed that we will do both. I'm excited for our future :o)
So what does this three paragraph rant really mean and why am "I not surprised" that Obama won?
Really...I am not suprised that America has chosen to elect Change because I have read the dreams and hope and visions of so many great poets who have fortold that this day will come. Instead of quoting them here, I've decided to devote this blog to re-interpreting poems through the focal lens of our culture. In other words, how do these poems mean and ring in our culture today. I will try not to regurgitate the theoretical hodgepodge that I learned during my 2 years of study in the MFA program at San Jose State. I will try to be honest, speak from my heart, and my gut; interpret language based on my street education, as well as my academic. As my favorite poet, Nikki Giovanni says in her book Cotton Candy on a Rainy Day, "when you get that plastic money, buy yourself an experience instead of a thing." I hope my experience of reading great poetry, will translate in this blog and that the renewing of the mind that has happened to me over and over again after reading a great poem -- will be your NEW Beginning and persuade you to do the same.
