Between a plane landing in the Hudson and President-Elect Obama being sworn in as President Obama (sayonara Dubs!!), it’s been a newsworthy week in the US.  Regarding the latter, Americans have glued themselves to various media outlets to witness history go down in a majorly exciting way.  Obama supporters or not, we are all familiar with Obama the brand and as Americans we are expecting big things.

Inauguration: 20 January 2009

Thrilled as I was to watch a remarkable moment in US and world history today, I couldn’t help but time travel back four years to reflect on the last State of the Union address.  Our country has come a long way since then, in both a good and bad sense.

Let’s start with the negative… this is just the big stuff that came to mind first (there’s more, but I don’t need to write a book).  First off , our nation had just re-elected Bush for a second term, as if the first four years weren’t damaging enough.  This of course led to a more involved and committing presence in Iraq and the Middle East, which placed the US at the top of every other country’s “Foreign Relations Superstars” list.  Then, our country proceeded to violate international human rights laws by illegally interrogating prisoners at secret military bases.  Also, we flirted with the possibility of military entanglement in Iran.  Realizing our problems at home were not as dire as those abroad, we threw trillions more of US dollars into a foreign war instead of investing in internal education and healthcare systems and then made a myriad of poor decisions in the financial sector, launching our country into a spiraling economic crisis.  Oh yeah, and then we changed GM’s dirty diaper yet again.

But, I’ll be fair, hindsight is always 20/20 and it’s always easier to criticize after the fact.  Despite being a country and population facing a lot of negatives right now (which even here in Never Neverland, Peter Pan and Tinkerbell are beginning to feel the effects), I have to admit I’ve begun to feel a lot of positive change.

In November, after the election, I road-tripped in the Western US and then flew back to New England in order to spend time with family and friends.  While on the road, I departed Jackson and hit up Reno (yes, Reno), Truckee, San Francisco, Napa, and followed the coastal highway more or less up to Portland, Oregon.  Back east, I mostly spent time in and around New Haven and New York.  Spending almost a month “coasting,” I had the privilege to experience variety of people, perspectives and places along the way.

As expected, I saw quite a bit of “red” paraphernalia in decidedly red states and a fair share of “blue” in super progressive cities like San Francisco and Portland.  But I also found surprises where I didn’t expect them—Obama bumper stickers on the road in rural Idaho, Obama/Biden signs spiked in front lawns in Nevada, and old timers talking about change over breakfast in a Truckee diner.

I’ve always felt bothered that our country has lacked a certain unity or national identity.  I realize this can be difficult to achieve as our country is varied and vast from east to west and north to south.  In most parts of the nation, a sense of regionalism prevails over a collective sense of nationalism.  However in the preceding months, I have felt, more than ever (and living here in WY nonetheless), more connected with the rest of the nation.

Conservative, Moderate, Liberal, Very Liberal, Independent, Undecided or Apathetic (per your Facebook profile?), in the past we have had the luxury of disputing each other’s ideologies.  In the present, we all face a harsher set of realities.  Suddenly, a nation of millions shares priorities. Finally, we’re on the same page.

Looking back at history, mindsets have to shift before we can experience tangible change.  My perception is that the US is moving in this direction and I hope change is in our future.  Knowing that President Obama enters this term with a full plate at home and abroad, I am trying my best to be patient, positive and proactive.  I can only hope the man lives up to and beyond the brand.