Leaving our children's world a little better than the world we inhabit today

That is a paraphrase of President-elect Barack Obama, who was quoted with saying, "Today we begin in earnest the work of making sure the world we leave our children is just a little better than the one we inhabit today."

It's an exciting time throughout the United States, and indeed throughout the world. For those of us (U.S. Citizens, and non-)who have waited impatiently for the excitement and fervor that came with President John Kennedy's 'Camelot' presidency, wait no more.

On January 20th, 2009, former Illinois State Senator Barack Obama will be named 43rd President of the United States of America. A man whose platform of change will usher in an 'era of responsibility', President Obama (can I drop the '-elect' already?) already has us thinking of the time when we will be able to chuckle at the current recession that has befallen our country, of a time when we can say 'I personally contributed to the growth and betterment of my country.'

'My country', indeed. Sweet land of liberty, of thee, I blog. I am beginning the year of 2009 with a broader undertanding of our country's political outlook. Thanks to the popularity of political shows "The Daily Show" and "The Colbert Report", as well as the sweeping coverage of the Nationally-blogged-about spectacle "Election 2008", we are all more involved in the process of the political commentary of our day than our parents were before us. We blog, some of us with fervor, we debate--atop soap boxes, or otherwise--and some of us even protest the perceived misdeeds of prior elected officials.

However you choose to express your involvement, I say keep it up! Whether it's through small donations of money or your time, through the good social works of volunteering, or even by frequenting your local library's political stacks, keep moving forward. Yearn for knowledge in the political process, ask the 'difficult questions' of your locally-elected public officials. Most importantly, grow within your community. Embrace your neighbors as your brothers and sisters (and yes, that cliche includes the little arguments we all have with our siblings, it's not just used to show that we must be 'buddy buddy' with everyone). Share the world you live in with the people who inhabit it.

As President Barack Obama has said, let's make it a better world for our children, and in turn, ourselves!