I saw a news clip of Barack Obama doing some Christmas shopping for his children. He looked and behaved just like a regular guy. What an incredibly strong mind and spirit he must have, to have survived his time in office so far and still be as sane as ever. If anything, adversity seems to have honed his finest qualities.
There’s something about him that reminds me of my father – a core of integrity and honesty. No desire or need to posture. People often see that as a weakness, but it’s not, it’s a strength. Posturing is for bullies and we all know that at the heart of a bully lies a person terrified of their own inadequacies.
Michelle Obama said of Barack once that one of the things she most admired about him was his ability to keep the clarity of his focus and sense of direction when everybody around him is criticizing him, raising dust storms of distractions calculated to cloud judgment and derail sanity. He just never seems to get lost.
He doesn’t look like a giant of a man, he’s so unimposing, but a giant he is. Real personal power isn’t noisy or ostentatious. It’s a quiet thing. It touches hearts and souls. It stands out as an anomaly in an over-materialistic world driven by greed, megalomaniac egos and a willingness to exploit and sacrifice the vulnerable. Thank god for anomalies. Personally, I’m sick of bullies, they cramp everybody’s style. And they’re usually incredibly boring.
Barack Obama has been a huge inspiration to me, just as a human being. Watching him draw from his inner resilience fills me with a sense of awe at what the human spirit can accomplish. He makes it look easy, but I know it isn’t. Think about how hard it is to deal with one person bad-mouthing you with no justification. Millions are doing it to him.
And the man hasn’t let them destroy him or turn him bitter. I’m sure they’ve hurt him but he hasn’t let them sully his soul or his spirit. That’s my kind of hero. Barack Obama, thank you for being in my world, and I hope that you and your family had a fabulous Christmas. And if I was American I’d vote for you.
Stepping out of History 