dreams come true

In the year 1963, Martin Luther King gave a speech from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. A crowd of more than two hundred thousand listened themselves into ecstasy as he illustrated his vision of the future, a future where color wouldn't matter anymore, where people would be judged by the content of their character. The speech was full of hope, a dream turned into words. It was a monumental event in American history. Even Bobby had showed up and sang a song with Joan. Change was in the air and faith in people's hearts.

Over the next years, things did indeed change, but whether for the better was not immediately clear. The U.S. invaded Vietnam, battling blindly in the jungle. A bloodier war hadn't been fought since the North stood up against the South. Tens of thousands were killed and countless imprisoned and tortured.

One such prisoner of war survived six horrible years in a military prison in Hanoi and entered politics shortly upon returning to the U.S. The culmination of his astounding career came last night when he stood in the U.S. presidential election. A tale like John McCain's sounds barely believable, as if taken straight from the storybooks. The papers should be full of words of disbelieve.

That they don't only shows how truly mind-blowing last night was. John McCain would have make a great president. After pathetically pandering to the Republican base for the duration of the campaign, he reverted to honesty and integrity in his concession speech. The fact that he had to concede, the fact that he was clearly only the second best in this contest must fill every American's heart with pride. What a blessed country this is.

Barack Obama will be the next president. Enough has been said and written already about the incredible tale of his life. I just want to note that next February, when the Lincoln Memorial will be rededicated in honor of Honest Abe's 200th birthday, a black man will once again climb its steps and give a speech. This time, though, hope doesn't need to be evoked. Change has already happened. A new era has begun. I'm grateful to those who voted for making this happen.