“It was a beautiful day, the sun beat down”  – Tom  Petty

In the literal sense, yesterday was not a beautiful day here in Charlotte and I don’t think the sun really made an appearance all day. However, none of that really mattered.  In a figurative sense, the rays were shining all around.

In just 43 years, this great country went from segregation to the election of an African-American to the highest office in the land.  This amazing accomplishment in no way excuses the prejudices that still abound in this country, but it goes a long way toward that sweet, peaceful dream that helped to spark the change that lead us to this place in history.  I imagine Dr. King smiling down at this great land from an even better place, humbled by the progress that his eloquent words helped bring about several decades ago.

Proud, as well, to hear President-elect Obama say last night that the election represented merely the chance to bring about change.  Now the work really begins.  There isn’t a chance that it’ll be easy.  It never is – nor should it be.  Only 43 other men have ever held the office that Barak Obama will assume in January.  No doubt, he’ll stand out in the annuals of history simply due to the color of his skin.  But that isn’t enough.  Not for him. Not for the proud African-American community. And not enough for “white folks” like myself who are inspired by love of God, country and the hope of a perfect union.

For now, every American – no matter race, religion, gender or party affiliation – should be proud of the message that we’ve sent to ourselves, to the next generation of Americans, and to the world.  This “shining city on a hill” that Ronald Reagan spoke of with such passion still burns brightly as a beacon of hope.  And now it burns blind to color.

So today, as we all step back and survey the awesome history that we’ve made, I’m reminded of another line from Tom Petty’s Runnin’ Down A Dream:

“Theres something good waitin down this road”

As Obama said, winning the election is just a chance to make a difference, now it is up to us get going down this road and help lead the way to reclaiming the greatness of these United States of America.