Hope from the White House

After President Obama was sworn in last Tuesday, I was amazed at how different everyone felt and everything looked despite there being no real change (as of yet) in the country; what we all reacted to must have been hope. I can only imagine those feelings were similar to what people felt with the election of President Kennedy.

In the week since the inauguration, President Obama has begun unveiling his agenda through a series of Presidential Orders, video addresses, cabinet member press conferences, and even an official White House blog. And while there is no guarantee of long-term commitment to these promises can't help but think his decision to be different, transparent, and proactive will, in the long run, be as important as any of the actual policies issued by his administration. He is redefining what the government CAN be and setting the standards very high; I suspect that our people will reject any real attempts to return to "how things used to be" with either this President or future leaders.

I'm excited! I can't wait to see what's next and to get my hands dirty with the minutia of running our country again. I trace this enthusiasm directly back to President Obama and what he's done so far. It''s inspiring and motivating, and I believe he was right on the mark with his comments challenging us to get involved and participate in the recovery effort, It used to be that voting was sufficient; I no longer think that's true. We need to educate ourselves, motivate ourselves and our friends, and get involved in the issues we care about the most.

These first 7 days have been a wake-up call. We have 93 days left of the first 100, and 1454 days left in Obama's first term. What are YOU going to do to help America realize Her promise and steer Her back on track? Make answering THAT your one of your Goals for the upcoming weeks and months.