A day late and a dollar short

Thank you to all of our veterans, THANK YOU!

I know I am late in recognizing our veterans, but it better late than never. I also want to personally thank my two brothers, my little sister, and my cousin who are serving our country right now.

I should know better than wait a day after Veterans Day to say thank you. I come from a family who always felt dedicated to serve their country. Thank you again.

Okay, now that I got my head out of the sand I can move on to real business.

It’s been eight days since Obama has been elected the 44th President to lead our country. I can feel the mood change all around me as I encounter people I’ve never met on the street. Now I live in the country where people are already friendly, but now people seem to be genuinely happy. It seems as if some have a new resound hope that the future will better. It’s a ‘Yes We Can’ spirit that seems to be resonating through out the country. Even those who do not support Obama have seemed to be surer of what the future might hold.

Not that we don’t have a long climb ahead of us, we do. But Americans have been blessed to have a certain attitude that always seems to gets us through the toughest times, the bleakest situations, and the most heart wrenching news to unfold before us. I am so proud to be an American.

Not that I wasn’t before, but there was a certain shame that did follow me as if I was involved in the slaving of innocent people who served only to make their captors richer and they were denied their freedom to live freely as every man, woman, or child was destined to do. I was ashamed of our policies that thought it was necessary to strike at innocent people and force them to adopt a way of life that wasn’t theirs and were told to strip their identity, their culture, their soul so that those around them can be more comfortable with them. I was ashamed to be involved in a country that thought it was okay to humiliate and capture those that they thought capable of committing crimes before they were committed. (Anyone remember the movie ‘Minority Report’). I am no longer ashamed. I am an American and damn proud of it.