Karen and I had the chance to go to the inauguration last week, and we are glad we did. It was an incredible experience. The peaceful transfer of power in our democracy is one of America’s greatest legacies and its grandest pageant. Watching that process with 2 million other people, is incredible. Now add the significance and emotion surrounding President Obama, and it was a truly electric atmosphere. Still sends a shiver down my spine thinking about it. (I am also still thawing out – it was freaking cold).
Karen and I did not have tickets. We stayed with Karen’s sister in Virginia and getting from there to DC on the inauguration day was an ordeal (long story). So we got there a little bit late. Rather than fight to the back of the National Mall we went straight to the Lincoln Memorial (I love that place). We were not alone, as it was packed with others who, like us, were mindful of the symbolism of experiencing the inauguration of our nation’s first African American president at the feet of Abraham Lincoln’s memorial and in the exact spot of Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream” speech.
I have uploaded an inauguration slideshow to the homepage. I hope you enjoy. Just for grins, here are a few pics of Karen and I soaking it all in, but please do check out the slideshow. You can click on www.www.seanfitzgerald.com link to see the slideshow with the largest images, if you missed it when you came to the site. Eventually I will take that homepage slideshow down, and then you can find the inauguration slideshow in the Portfolios section and the Collections section.
You may use HTML tags for style
I did not vote for Obama, mainly because of Biden and the rest of the dem party but I find the pictures phenomenal. The joy on so many faces of a tremendously diverse crowd. The solemnity on so many of the black American faces for whom this was so meaningful. Really a moving collection as a collection.