The song of my country

Today I was lost in the middle of a big hospital. I asked a staff person to direct me to the right area and he motioned for me to follow him and he would show me the way. He was tall and lanky, very dark and shy. We walked up and down many hallways and the entire time he was singing a beautiful song, very quietly to himself. When I asked him what he was singing he seemed embarassed, as though he didn't know I could hear it. He said "Oh, it's the song of my country, that's all". I asked him what his country was and he told me he was from the Sudan. He said he missed it and would be going back.

This made me think today, what is the song of my country? I don't think it is the Star Spangled Banner, or even God Bless America, though both of these make me weep every time I hear them.

Today, on the eve of the most exciting inauguration of my lifetime, I feel the song of my country is a homogeneous blend of so many cultures. It is the song of zydeco from the bayous of Lousianna, it's the sound of smoky jazz from Chicago, it's salsa and the blues, it's hip hop and reggae and Chopin and klezmer, it's the native American flute and rock and roll and it's all of us from all walks of life. Our song is a chorus, not a solo.

There has never been a time when I felt more hope for a country that is so broken at the tender places. We are humbled, we are in need and what we need is each other. We are hungry for the partisan politics of the past to be replaced by the unity of a nation.

Barack Obama will not be a perfect president. He will let us down, make mistakes and come up short to be sure. But he is the first man in politics in a very long time who has the ability to call out of us that which has long been in slumber-hope.

My song today is "It's a New Day" by Will I Am. It speaks to my soul and it makes me happy.