BBs Blog

As I watched the swearing in of our 44th President, I felt a wonderful sense of pride to be a citizen of this great nation. Yes, Obama himself reminded us there are dark stains upon the history of this great nation. Yet the fact that he stood before We The People taking the oath of office is proof positive those dark stains can and will gradually fade away if We The People truly do unite, and hold fast to the belief that ALL people are created equal.

Listening to his speech also made me glad to be the Crone that I am. Unlike many of the younger people listening to his speech, I could look back and remember what it was like to experience desegregation in action. Memories of seeing black students joining the schools I attended came flooding back. Though I could not help but remember how strongly some fought that, I also remembered that many of us welcomed that change, and embraced those new students.

Innocent youngster that I was, I was confused at first by all the hoopla and violence accompanying desegregation. To me, those new students coming into the schools I attended were kids just like me. So what if their skin was a different hue than mine? When my young eyes looked upon that darker hue, I saw only another human being beneath it. And I’m very glad to say that although my old eyes have become a very dark shade of jaded about many things in life, no matter what hue a person’s skin may be, I still see only another human being beneath it.

Having lead such a nomadic life back then, I understood on a very profound level how hard it was for even a caucasian student to find acceptance in a new school. Being the perpetual new kid on the block helped make me very quick to accept and try to welcome those new darker hued students to whatever school I also happened to be attending at the time. Oh sure, I could have sided with the young bigots, and perhaps found a fast means of acceptance that way. I knew I would soon be moving on though, and once again trying to find a niche in yet another new school. So like many others were doing back then, I chose to cross that line of bigotry, and seek temporary acceptance among those who stood on the right side of it.

I left behind me a trail of temporary friends of various skin colors as I moved from school to school. I doubt if any of those fleeting darker hued friends remember the painfully thin blonde child who was among the first to welcome them to the new educational world they were being thrust into. But, I’m very glad the nomadic existence I lead back then helped me to cross that line of color, and be able to welcome them with an open heart.

Many things have shaped and molded me into the person I am today. That person is so very glad to see the Civil Rights Movement that began when I was just a child, progress to the point it has today. Yes, in many ways, we still have a long ways to go when it comes to the issue of race. But, we need to remember, and celebrate the fact we have already come a very long way.