Hail To The Chief!

WASHINGTON, D.C. — My feet are almost frostbitten, my fingers are numb and I’m alternately suffering fever and chills from the flu I’ve battled since last week. I struggle to maintain my focus and listen to the speech.

I look down at the frozen lawn, and realize several pairs of feet are crammed up against mine. I turn and gaze first behind me, then before me.

An ocean of people, a rainbow of races, generation upon generation, is flowing from the foot of the Washington Monument, down through the National Mall to the steps of the U.S. Capitol and beyond to the Lincoln Memorial.

Then, a moment of radical clarity — Barack Obama is delivering his inaugural address.

As the crush of humanity cheers loud, long and strong, I’m more and more certain it’s not a hallucination, and hear myself saying out loud:

“He’s the freakin’ president!”