i am not an american citizen.  i am by no means a great supporter of all things american. i do appreciate a lot of what they have done for the rest of the world, and for entertainment but most of the time i don’t agree with the country, her policies and certain aspects of her culture. 

my closest connection i have to america is my mother and my sister who are both american citizens, and as of late i have felt a growing distance from my sister’s and my mothers place of citizenship.  i wanted to love the place more but there was something holding me back.

since 4 or 5 years ago, i began to feel this growing distance from the country and the people i most resemble and sound like.  part of it was the issues at homeland security and tsa and also some cultural run-ins i’ve had with some people.

this is by no means a diss to the people of america, far from it.  i have many close friends, family and former classmates, and millions of people who live and work in america who are much smarter and know waaay more shit that i do.

but through the course of the last 11 months something happened in me that drew me back to this country called the usa.  the belief that hope was back on the menu.  that it was ok to believe that things would be cool again.

like i’ve said i’m not american, i don’t know enough about american politics, even after minoring in american studies.  but i do know after the events that transpired on Nov 5th for me, I do believe we are better off.

i don’t know obama. i don’t know if his policies will work.  I don’t even like some of his policies, but i know i just feel better about an america with him in charge.

he has opened up doors for everyone.  the african-american barrier has been shattered, but now latino’s, chinese, koreans, japanese, just about ever national minority who ever though that they were held down now know that they have a chance.

since Reagan left office, i have watched these elections play out and each of them have been a learning experience and just incredible to watch.  but what happened yesterday was something amazing.  i had the feeling that things were going to look better for everyone.  iraqis, americans and everyone else around the world.  He may be the president of the united states, but he represents all of us in our own personal way.

by the time you have read this, i would have already been one of the last people to comment on this historical event.  but i felt that it was something that we have all felt so attached to and something that kept all of us glued to our tvs (eventhough we were nearly sick of the coverage).  i hope that you don’t mind reading one more.

Good luck President Obama (it feels weird to say, but feels awesome too), and Congratulations.

cheers,