Where were you?

Every generation seems to have at least one "where were you..." moment. Most of the ones I can think of signified an American tragedy:

Where were you when Kennedy was shot?
Where were you the day Challenger went down?
Where were you on September 11th?

For the first time that I can think of, the question now posed raises a sense of hope and promise for the future:

Where were you when the first African American man became president?


I know that Sydney is too young to remember this moment. My kindergartners (who all saw the inauguration this morning) may yet be too young. But the fact remains that Sydney will be able to lay claim to the heritage of this moment in history just by being alive as it happens. Sydney's great grandmother was born into a world that included men and women who had been born into American slavery. Sydney's grandmother was born into a world that still had separate schools for blacks and whites. Sydney was born into a world ready to elect a black man president.

Just thinking about the changes in America in those generation gaps amazes me. It makes me wonder, what will the world be like for Sydney's grandchildren? I hope it will be an even better place. I hope that it will be better in part for Sydney being in it.

I believe that it will.