As I listened to President Obama's Inaugural Speech today, among the many inspirational and insightful things he said today, I was most struck when he said "...On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord."
Ironically, sitting knitting at a local coffee shop this morning and listening to Jazmine Sullivan's "Fearless" album on my iPod, I had been thinking along these same lines, but with a slightly different tinge. Most notably, the lyrics of "Fear" resonated in my mind again as I had been looking back on recent events in my life and how I and many in my life have/had been seized by fear and uncertainty. This year and for the rest of my life, I will endeavor to relinquish fear for hope's sake and continue to tread into unknown territory and light a path that other's might follow in their own journey into change and growth.
As you ponder your own life and what role you play in the lives of others, think on your own fears and how you might work to overcome them. Think on how you might help others let go their fears and grasp hope's hand.
The outgoing (or outgone!!! hooray) administration has done a good job of telling the public to be afraid, very afraid (to the point where I thought we maybe needed to change "land of the free and home of the brave" to something else). Maybe asking the public to choose hope over fear is as significant as "all we have to fear is fear itself."
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