And when I say “what he represents,” I don’t mean his race. I mean his message that each of us can and must take responsibility for bettering our individual and collective circumstances. I believe that he is intelligent, thoughtful, openminded, deliberative, and in control. But didn’t win just because he was qualified, he won because he inspired millions of people to believe that their work could help move the country in the direction of their ideals, and, crucially, acted on that belief.

People like Kelli, who want to make the world a better place, and don’t just wish for it but roll up their sleeves and get to work, are few and far between. I hope that average people, whatever their political persuasion, take the message from this election that ordinary people have a great capacity to make change, and that they’ll carry that message forward.

In short, Obama has reminded us that we CAN. It’s up to us to make sure that we DO.

I cried last night. I cried in the car this morning. And I think I even saw Bubba shed a tear during his speech last night.

Welcome, new President, we’ve been waiting a long, long time for this.

The tears do not stop flowing, I am so overjoyed. I know we have a long road ahead of us but I am so happy to be an American again.