Of the many moving, inspiring, and quotable moments from yesterday's inauguration, that's the one line that stuck in my head with the most tenacity. It is no secret that Obama is a skilled orator - something even his critics agree on. But I was still surprised that a speech that was so choc-ful-o' admonitions about the future, gentle chastisements about our current woes, and a very even distribution of blame - right down to each and every American - could be so phenomenally uplifting at the same time.
How does one do that?! No, seriously, I want to know for my own use and purposes. And, more to the point, how will his daughters ever stand a chance of persuading him to take the car for a spin when they turn 16?!
But back to the quote that stuck with me. President Obama said that we are entering a "new age of responsibility", and I nodded with fervor because it is a change I have seen already played out in my life and the lives of my close friends.
One by one, we have struggled with our economic situations and the radical changes that have come our way over the past three or four years. For my generation, the drastic change in economic climate dovetailed with all of the massive changes that go along with having children, negotiating careers, and settling into a home. And it was a rough wake-up call, indeed, when we learned that a fabulous wedding for 250 of your closest friends; a registry at Pottery Barn; a nursery filled with the most tasteful furniture and creature comforts; a career that demands just enough of your time without taking you away from your family; and a house in a nice nice neighborhood filled with Ethan Allen furniture (look! free design advice! it must be a good idea!), was not in fact, a birthright.
Because I honestly think we believed it was.
In our case, there were of course, lots of mitigating circumstances. Medical bills, a mother-in-law, and a heaping helping of grief purchases (including our house) that surely exacerbated our situation. But then again, I think most families have some of that - it just comes in different forms.
And no one made us do it. We are smart people, my friends and I. And still, we were swept up in the consumerism that became the norm over the past ten years. Everything from the "acceptable" size of the diamond in an engagement ring (not to mention the type of metal) to the number of bedrooms in one's house became standardized at a level almost none of us could actually afford. But we played along because there were credit cards in our wallets, financing options for the furniture, and no-money-down on practically anything.
The news and the market filled our ears with the good news about the bounty of our economic market. Real estate is good! Business is up! Buy now, it's an investment! Invest now, it's your future! It'll cost more tomorrow, so buy it now!
And we agreed. Not because it made sense, but because it felt good.
But then things began to unravel. And if my life and that of my friends was any sign, it began long before the market crumbled this fall. We began feeling the effects a couple of years ago. And when we were dragged kicking and screaming decided to move out to the cabin last summer, it was not without a good deal of bitching and moaning on my behalf. It also came with a lot of promises to myself that this would be temporary. That I wouldn't have to live with faux wood paneled walls for more than a year-and-a-half, two tops! That we would be back in our big, comfy, scorpion-free house in a jiffy, and that my two kids wouldn't have to share a room any longer than necessary.
How ridiculous and, yes, "childish".
It is on a daily basis now that I marvel at how much we still have and how filled our lives were with WORTHLESS SHIT. Worthless shit that I cried over for days. Worthless shit that I can honestly say I do not miss now (save maybe 10%). Because it has been replaced with far better.
Do I still think this is hard? Absolutely. Do I think things will get better. Yes. But maybe not in the way we originally thought. Maybe better doesn't mean "more". Maybe it means truly better.
Either way, I am glad to have a leader who is so very grounded. Who is willing to point the finger at me and say, "Yes, you have made some poor choices - but so have we all. And we will move on. And we will move up. And we will be better than okay. Better, indeed, than before."
So glasses up (plastic though they may be), for a toast to the new age of responsibility. It's a nice place to live, if you haven't already visited. You'll like the neighbors - they promise not to get too self-righteous.
