I have not always felt as though anything was possible or that America had a place for me, but when I look at my son, who also happens to be biracial and smart as a whip, I see no external obstacles to his success. I see no walls, which he will not be able to scale if he puts his mind to it. I no longer think it is possible to dream too big. If Nicholas chooses to run for the highest office in the land in 2040 when he turns 35, I know that his background will not stand in his way. The Republicans would be another matter though! Never before have I appreciated the favorite saying of my hero Tim Russert as much as I do today: "What a country!"
Thursday, November 13, 2008
NICHOLAS '40
On my way to work today after dropping off my son Nicholas, who is three, at daycare, I was thinking about how far this country has come. Last week, a 1/2 black man with the name Barack Hussein Obama, about as radioactive a name as one could imagine in this day and age, was elected the 44th President of the United States. His candidacy throughout the primaries and general election was inspirational to many of us, but I felt a special thrill. Here was a truly self-made man, who made the most of every opportunity, who put education and hard work first, and who despite being a "skinny kid with a funny name" thought that "America had a place for him, too."
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2 comments:
Amen brother- watch out world for Czar Nicholas!
I share your hope for the future and agree that from a social fabric standpoint, things look bright for our children. My hope is that in time they look back at our generation and those before us with some amount of puzzlement over some of the issues that dominated our national discourse....race, stem cell research, patriotism, gay people getting married.
However and I am not trying to dampen your enthusiasm, but what worries me, what truly seems to be increasingly likely as even the weeks go by is that our children stand a very good chance of not having the same economic cushion that we experienced as children and young adults. Namely that their ability to prosper easily with a college education and a reasonable goal may be much more difficult. and if we have cause for concern with our position within the economic ladder, consider the financial position of a child with a single mom in Ohio?
Perhaps this is all not bad....perhaps the current generation of teenagers and 20 year olds need a kick in the ass. Perhaps we all need a bit more reason to stop and ask ourselves what the future entails without the reassurance that it is simply cashing in stock from 401k investments. maybe this will result in my daughter at age 24 more likely to choose to be a teacher or a social worker or an environmental advocate rather than a business or sales person in some corporation with great incentive pay and stock options. I am not sure, but the future is coming soon. They will grow up faster and faster and will only know the world that they experience. We will see.
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