Wednesday, November 5, 2008

President Obama

It's 2:30 AM. Obama is the President of the United States. (Pretty much.)


who was that masked man?

In the streets of New York, crowds are still cheering, shouting "Yes, we can!" Cars honk their horns. People bang pots and pans. They cannot stop. Don't want to stop. When the announcement came over the television that he had been elected, cheers erupted from the streets. A crowd gathered on 8th Street and 1st Avenue, taking over the intersection. Police pushed them back here and there, but otherwise left the celebration alone.

People in cars stopped and the crowd rushed to shake their hands and kiss them through open windows.

Garbage men riding the backs of honking trucks waved and pumped their fists.

City bus drivers honked and slowed down so passengers could stick their hands from the windows and high-five the people on the street.



At Union Square, the park was packed. People climbed lamp posts and hoisted flags atop. We sang God Bless America. We chanted "U-S-A" and "Yes, We Can" and "O-Ba-Ma!" Strangers hugged and kissed strangers.

The celebration went on and on, a wave that rose and fell, then rose again, for hours and hours. Down side streets and avenues, in pockets of jubilant people.

After joining them for hours of that jubilation, I'm putting in my earplugs and going to bed.



Earlier tonight, this stranger in an Obama Halloween mask appeared in the crowd at Union Square and people fell upon him with adoration. As if he were the real thing. Acting the part, uninhibited behind that face, the stranger opened his arms and enveloped us.

He took me into his arms and we embraced. His hug was strong. Caught up in the mass delusion, the pleasant folie a plusieurs that this stranger had brought into our midst, I felt like I was being embraced by my new president, a man who could see me, who would include me in his vision for the country.

And it was good.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

You do realize that Senator Obama is not yet the President, only the President-Elect (and technically not even that until the Electoral College meets and the results are certified in Congress).

Jeremiah Moss said...

i'm jumping ahead

Anonymous said...

Me personally, I find the picture of all of those electronic hand held portable devices up in the air very disturbing.

There is just something about these current times that makes me think that GOD has a major surprise for us coming our way very soon.

I do not quite know what it will be but chances are it will not be good.

Jeremiah Moss said...

i agree knicks. the number of image-capturing devices was staggering. they moved like component parts of a single electronic organism, every time the attention shifted. and my own camera was part of that organism, which gave me pause. but i excuse myself because "it's for the blog." and yet...

Anonymous said...

One gets the feeling of a logical desire to see W out of the White House. The Obama presidency will have another distinction -- having to follow the worst president in the nation's history.

Anonymous said...

Well, let's hope Obama is going to really make us a "great" country again. Talk is cheap. Russia still hates us and they are the becoming THE world power along with China.
We need to support small businesses in NYC and raising taxes on them and letting foreigners buy them out can only do us damage. So let's hope Obama is going to do this country some good.

Anonymous said...

Very, very quiet night in Bayside and Little Neck. Like nothing happened...

www.forgotten-ny.com

Anonymous said...

...and I knew he was unqualified then, told my girlfriend so, that he'd hardly ever even voted on a bill. Of course, to question his gifts or lack thereof was called racist.This after a life supporting Democratic candidates. So here we are with this product designed to please everyone that can't govern.

Anonymous said...

Sorry, but have to agree with anon. 2:47pm 10/26/2012

Also, the 2008 election was voted like it was an American Idol contest. It was another popularity/reality contest voted by the Lena Dunham generation.