'I thank God that I have lived to see it'

We asked you to tell us what Barack Obama's inauguration as president means to you, and you responded with eloquent essays, poems and even paintings commemorating this moment in history.

'Even when you're important, you're still like everybody else'

By Kayla Cook

When I met Barack Obama, he told me to work hard in school and dream big dreams.

I got to meet him because my Uncle Pete Dagher was running the Chicago Obama headquarters.

Me, my mom and my dad went there one night. I was really excited because he was a United States senator running for president.

That day at camp, we had an activity. We made bracelets out of a red, white or blue pipe cleaners and red, white and blue beads for the Fourth of July. I chose blue. And I did a pattern of blue, red and white beads.

We also made posters. Mine said, "Obama Rocks!" because I knew I was going to go to the headquarters.

When we went there that night, I was sitting comfortably in an orange chair. And then I heard his footsteps. Then I had to stand up. He walked in. I was standing between my mom and dad. He walked right past my mom, who was on my left, and he went straight to me.

All I could see was the bottom of his chin because he's so tall.

I said, "Hi, I'm Kayla." He shook my hand and said, "Hello, Kayla." Then he shook my mom and dad's hands.

I nervously gave him the bracelet and poster that I made. I wondered if he liked them. He studied them and held onto them.

Then he walked over to a desk, asked for a piece of scratch paper and a pen, and he wrote me a thank-you letter.

This taught me that, even when you're important, you're still like everybody else. It's important to say, "thank you."

My mom and dad couldn't believe what they were seeing. My mom was totally caught up in the moment.

Then Sen. Obama said, "Kayla, I'm sure your mom would like to take a picture." It was like he was cueing her for her lines in a play. My mom took out her camera and took one picture.

I am not surprised that he is going to be president because he was so kind and caring.

On the night of the election, when Barack Obama was proclaimed the new president, my dad told me that it's an executive order - I have to work hard in school or I'm breaking the law.

• Kayla Cook, 9, is a third-grader at Madison Elementary School in Lombard and the daughter of Daily Herald Opinion Page Editor Anne Halston.

'Hope for the best and worst of us'

By Timothy Nunes

While American politics often seem synonymous with conflict and polarization, vitriol and disharmony, this year's election was like no other in recent memory. Strong women running as candidates for both parties, a longer-than-usual primary season, states traditionally labeled one "color" voting for another party's candidate.

And after all was said and done, after all the political posters were placed, all the commercials aired and all the debates over, we Americans, for the first time in U.S. history, chose a candidate of African-American descent to lead our country. Historic times, indeed... But what does it mean to the average American?

Well, I'd like to think of myself as an "average American", with poor, Dust Bowl roots on one side and immigrant roots on the other... "A mutt," if you will, to quote our president-elect.

I'm also a father with wishes of unbridled opportunity for my daughter, and a friend of some from whom the American dream of equality for all is still being withheld to this day.

My roots have taught me to appreciate all this great country can give, while my experiences have convinced me that we still have so much more to strive for.

All of which is to say that, though it may sound a bit trite after a seemingly endless election season, this year's presidential election has left me with hope. Hope for the best and worst of us, the fools and sages, the haves and have nots. We "Americans."

May God have mercy on us all, and most of all upon our next president, Barack Obama.

• Timothy R. Nunes lives in Lisle

'I cried with joy when victory was announced'

By Anne O'Brien

I campaigned for Obama with donations, phone calls and canvassing trips to Wisconsin.

In Grant Park, I cried with joy when victory was announced. I will undoubtedly cry with joy during the inauguration.

I could not dream that this would happen in my lifetime.

During the summer of 1956, the beginnings of the Civil Rights movement filled the air in Louisiana with tension and hate. Every afternoon when the heat and humidity were high, Ben's bicycle cart brought ice cream.

One day, a neighborhood boy said the "N" word in front of Ben. He said nothing, but the angry look on his black face spoke volumes.

Although never exposed to racist words in my own home, I had been taught that it was an awful word, never to be spoken. I was afraid that Ben thought I used that awful word.

The next day, I loudly announced that I was buying the ice cream for Joyce, our "Negro" maid. Again he flashed an angry look. Somehow, I was suddenly alongside the boy who had said that horrible word.

At 8 years old, stunned and heartbroken, I learned a powerful lesson that afternoon.

People deserve to be treated as individuals. No one wants a label. People are people. Joyce was Joyce and Ben was Ben.

At 16, I cried during Martin Luther King Jr.'s famous "I Have a Dream" speech. The idea of an America where people "will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character" seemed impossibly far away.

It seemed farther away after moving to Chicago with its pockets of bigotry and segregation reminiscent of the Deep South.

This inauguration is one step closer to the realization of a dream shared by King and one small 8-year-old child.

• Anne O'Brien, 61, of Arlington Heights, volunteered for Obama.

'I thank God that I have lived to see it'

By Joan C. Potter

I am 74 years old. I was born and grew up in a small town called Watonga in the state of Oklahoma, which had a population of no more than 2,000. Watonga had three separate and racially segregated schools. One was for whites, one was for Indians and one was for colored.

There, everything was segregated. Entrances to public places, interior seating, water fountains and even different roads. The Roman nose State Park had an arrow pointing right clearly marked for whites, which led to a beautiful grassy, trimmed and ornate picnic area. The arrow pointing left marked for colored took you to a deserted area where the grass and weeds were taller than the picnic tables and rattle snakes sunned on the tables in early spring.

I could go on forever, but I'm sure you get the picture. Our parents tried to calm our feelings of injustice and desperation. They said, "Get an education and go someplace where segregation doesn't exist."

It angered me that the system taxed all equally, but did not allow equal use of the facilities for which our tax money was used.

I attended Langston University, Oklahoma's only black college. When married, we came to Illinois, where we hoped for a better life. We soon found out that segregation was everywhere, only in Illinois we could fight it.

I say all this to explain how amazed I am that Barack Obama was in the year of 2008 elected to the highest office in this country. His election is not just historic, but unbelievable! Having lived in both worlds, I had tears in my eyes when he was nominated, tears of joy when he was elected and I'll probably be a real mess when he is inaugurated.

It's been a long time coming. I thank God that I have lived to see it. I thank God for Barack Obama and pray that he will be safe and effective throughout his term in office. I believe he is just, fair and strong enough to lead this country to the place for which our Constitution was written - the place where all men are created equal and to unite its people in the effort.

I don't have to explain segregation and prejudice to my grandchildren and great grandchildren. That's what Barack Obama's inauguration means to me!

• Joan C. Potter, a retired federal government employee, lives in Huntley.

'They can aspire to the highest office'

By John Brennan

Our daughter, Sarah, along with three friends, started a charter school in August 2007. They were awarded the last Chicago Public Schools charter approved by the state legislature. The school opened with a fifth grade in the Englewood area of Chicago - an area in need of lots of services.

Amandla Charter School, a science and math college preparatory school, will add a grade each year until it covers grades 5 through 12. The 91 fifth-graders currently enrolled are called the Class of 2020 - the year they will graduate from college.

When I think of "President Obama," I always think of Sarah's students. From now on, whether they are boys or girls, they can aspire to the highest office in the world. And they can achieve their goals not through professional sports or music groups, but by academic excellence and self-discipline - the things being drilled into them at Amandla Charter School.

•John Brennan of Mount Prospect is a human resources consultant and volunteer Spanish medical interpreter.

'The potential to make Americans proud'

By James M. Wall

Barack Obama, our first African-American president, is an inspiring leader with a streak of pragmatism. He wants to solve problems based on what he believes will rescue the world's sole remaining superpower from descending further into hopelessness.

I worked as a political volunteer for every Democratic presidential candidate since George McGovern in 1972. Some of my candidates were elected, others lost. But in no election since 1972 have I witnessed such a charge of national and international energy surrounding a presidential transition.

Obama is not easily catalogued on the political spectrum. Our national and international problems demand solutions, not ideological rants. His political opponents attack him as a "liberal," but that term is not an accurate description of how Obama functions. He is pragmatic progressive, which means he wants to restore the government to a problem-solving role, with an abiding belief that the government must provide what is best for the common good.

I share Obama's belief that government is not the problem, but the solution, the reverse of Ronald Reagan's description in 1980. The question of how the government will act to solve the problems which we inherited from a combination of faulty government decisions, and historic circumstances, demands careful thought unencumbered by ideology.

We did not anticipate the suffering caused by Katrina, but in retrospect, we can evaluate the poor planning, failed government response and racism that tainted recovery efforts in the wake of Katrina.

We did anticipate the agony of what is happening right now in Gaza. Because of ideological predispositions - with a Congress and a president unable to see but "one side" of the issue - we now witness massive suffering caused by our government's failure to act before this current invasion of Gaza took place.

Barack Obama knows this, just as he knows what failures led to and exacerbated the suffering surrounding Katrina. His pragmatism should enable him to provide leadership that will prevent future Katrinas and future Gazas.

I believe Barack Obama has the intellect, the energy, and the personal dedication to implement plans for the future that will address those problems. He is also an inspiring leader who has the potential to make Americans proud of their president, and eager to follow his leadership.

Obama brings to the White House the pragmatism of an Abraham Lincoln and the inspirational style of a Franklin D. Roosevelt. Not a bad combination for a president who believes government can solve problems.

• The Rev. James Wall, an Elmhurst resident, has been active in Democratic Party politics since 1968. He is former editor of Christian Century magazine.

'Moving toward fulfilling the hopes and dreams of Dr. King'

By Clyde Brooks

It is ironic that 24 hours after the nation celebrates the 80th birthday of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., President-elect Obama will become president of the United States.

Simply stated, the election of Obama is really not about him, but rather about a changing United States of America.

After numerous and costly court cases, filings with agencies such as the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, debates, arguments and a host of historical unpleasantries, we are on our way to becoming a nation of diversity inclusiveness - an America moving toward fulfilling the hopes and dreams of Dr. King and many others.

As I assessed the election of President-elect Obama, words penned and spoken by Dr. King rang through my ears. In a 1963 speech, Dr. King stated: "He has allowed me to go up to the mountains and I've looked over and seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you but I want you to know tonight that we as a people will get to the Promised Land."

Having worked with Dr. King, I believe these profound words did not necessarily refer to a "heaven in the sky," but rather his conclusion that one day African-Americans and other disenfranchised Americans would be included in every segment of American life. He was referring to freedom, respect and enjoyment of the same privileges granted white Americans.

The fact that Obama's body contains the blood of both white and black Americans is itself symbolic of the hopes and dreams of Dr. King and many of us. I say this because it gives meaning to the reality that black and white Americans are truly one in the same body called a nation. His election shows that we can, despite our differences, come together in peace and love.

In November I took a group of theologians to the Middle East to help end their silence about the need for peace in that part of the world. As I walked the streets, Palestinian people would walk up to me with a smile and utter, "Do you know Mr. Obama? Take me to America with you." His election will allow not only Americans, but also the world, to look beyond race. It will place our nation on the high road of international respect, respect once held but lost.

His election is a signal to the world, a world whose population is two-thirds people of color, that America practices what it preaches to other nations: We are a great Christian nation made up of great people of various cultures and races, and none are superior to another.

Obama's election says something about the people of America. It was not about "affirmative action," a phrase often used by some Americans when an Afican-American is promoted. It was about "color blindness." It was about acting on what was best for the United States.

To African-Americans, it is a call to stop acting like victims and stop questioning the honesty of our white brothers and sisters. We must remember that, as was the case with former Chicago Mayor Harold Washington and a host of others, President-elect Obama could not have been elected without white support.

And to President-elect Obama, I pray and hope that he does not forget those African-Americans who helped pave the way for his victory. It occurred, in part, due to lessons learned from prior African-Americans who ran unsuccessfully for the presidency.

This election was about the rebirth of a nation. While much remains to be done, and while Obama has yet to prove himself, it is now up to him. I am pleased and honored to be an American, and I am equally thrilled that I have been a part of helping to create a climate where such progress can be shown.

• The Rev. Clyde Brooks of Arlington Heights is leader of the Illinois Commission on Diversity and Human Relations.

'They were actually excited for politics'

By Kara Zimmerman

In the months leading up to the general election, I worked as an intern for Barack Obama's Campaign for Change in Bloomington, Ind., home of Indiana University. My tasks included registering voters, canvassing, making phone calls, and generally trying to connect with the student body.

Believe me, I was not a welcome presence on campus. I annoyed students with several phone calls each day, interrupted their classes with announcements about voting, blanketed the campus in posters, stickers, and chalk messages. I often doubted that I was making a difference, especially when there was such a negative response from the community.

However, the night of the election, it finally became clear. The entire country watched as Indiana went blue, and once it did, something amazing happened on the IU campus. Students started cheering, marching, and celebrating in the streets, the students were excited for something other than sports or concerts; they were actually excited for politics. And I realized that response was a direct result of every hour I put in at campaign headquarters, every night I skipped dinner to work, every flyer I handed out, every friend that resented me for asking them repeatedly to volunteer.

In two months, I faced more hang-ups and slammed doors than most people will in their lifetimes, but seeing Barack Obama inaugurated as President of the United States makes it all worthwhile. In past elections, college students were the forgotten ones, ignored by campaigning politicians. But, for the first time, an election was heavily swayed by the youth vote.

So, for me, this inauguration is not only about the first black president or the much- needed change for this country. Although those are important, this inauguration is also about the pride I take in knowing that I helped change the world.

• Kara Zimmerman, a 20-year-old Vernon Hills native, is a junior at Indiana University.