There was sooooooo much to celebrate at the Grand Opening of the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago today. I was choking up to hear one of my favorite “hymns” — “To Dream the Impossible Dream” sung right after “The Star Spangled Banner” — oh indeed! — with Bill Clinton mouthing the words — it broke me with — yes! oh yes! FIrst Lady Michelle Obama’s call to remember and then to act in hope. The intentionality of the center itself — communal, welcoming, diverse, fun, lovely. Angela Merkle! Bono! John Legend! Marc Anthony! The Boss! The guy playing Tuba!! Stevie Wonder! (“All praise to God for this moment.”) And the whole Obama family singing along with him!
Presidents and leaders of our past — when presidents used to be for us, not against us. Of course they made mistakes. Did you think they were gods? But they really did believe in America and in us and they did their best with the times they were given. Thank you.
Of course I personally could watch the ASL signers sign for hours — just them alone brings me deep joy beyond even understanding — the glorious language of hands and faces — I mean seriously did you see just the hands signing trumpets, drums, guitars playing? People clapping? Hands. Our hands. Let us make our hands stretch again to clasp each other across this nation, throughout this world.
The smiles — the hugs — hard, deep hugs. The laughter (George Bush and Michelle Obama). The love of the daughters, Malia and Sasha, now beautiful women. Once children — now examples of goodness and love for the next generation of children.
Children on stage, children from all across the nation, with parents who wanted to them to see what we could be, coming to remember and to hope again what it is to believe in US, in the U.S. — to hope, to celebrate what we are and can be. “You better believe”.
Okay — again — Michelle Obama. Yowza. Amen. I had a constant “gulp” — throat gulping — eyes tearing up. I could feel my heart beating for the first time in a while with that deep connection to what we can be at our best.
And it was about one man who made us realize it is never and never has been about one man — no matter what someone with power or access or obscene amounts of money tell you. It is about one man, and one woman, and one boy, and one girl, and one Latinex, and one Black, and one white, and one farmer, and one teacher, and one mechanic, and one restaurant owner and one waiter, and one and one and one and one becoming All of Us. I can’t wait to see this center someday — where people come to garden and play Bball, and read in the reading room, and pray in a church or on a rug or near a wooded glen or in a closet — and about one and one and one who long to see a history that can encourage us to make a future. “No gale can topple us over”. Believe. Hope.
And oh, the love. And oh, my heart — Obama. The Love. How could anyone turn away from this? How could anyone doubt that this is what we are meant to be? We had it in our grasp to be this, to do this, to know this. This is what we are called to be. This is what we are at our best — anywhere, any time, any color, any gender, any nation, any tribe. “Everyone has a sacred story to tell if you just care to listen — full of courage and grace and purpose”. How amazing it was to hear a leader who could put words to thoughts with truth and care and grace and compassion and vision! Community! Do you remember what that feels like? Can you imagine what that will feel like to be again?
Our common humanity and bonds can be based on trust. When is the last time you heard a leader say “we” — this is about “we”. — “us”? Oh my. Wasn’t it lovely to use our brains again? To be not only back in reality but in memory of what we have been and hope in what we can be? Wasn’t it a strange combination of peace and exhilaration? Wasn’t it amazing to hold up a mirror that we haven’t held up to ourselves in so long — -the mirror of us as a democracy, as a community, as a force for goodness not just in this country but in the world — One in God, One in grace and justice, One in the desire to make the world, this nation, the planet a place our children and grandchildren will inherit with gratitude and dreams, One in purpose, One in hope?
Remember intelligence? Remember compassion? Remember world vision? Remember sharing? Remember stories of not billionaires or mockers or deniers — but stories of hard workers, and families, and students, and faithful, simple, hopeful — people like us?
Today — I remembered and rejoiced — that we are here. We. Are. Here. And as long as we are here, we are responsible and we are able.
Chicago, the home of the Obama Presidential Center, was once my city, and I think your first city is always what you believe a city can is — can be. I am proud to be from that part of the world — the middle part of this great nation, the “fly-over zone”, the “bread basket” and “bible belt” — of this glorious, diverse, beautiful land that we call The United States of America. We have been given so much here. May be remember that we are stewards. We are care-takers. We are borrowers from our children.
As President Obama said, “let us turn towards each other, not further away”.
“Oh, what a glorious task we are given to continually strive to improve this great Nation of ours”. (The Boss quoting Obama from his speech at Selma.)
Thank you for today, Barack Obama and family — both given and chosen. Thank you for pointing us towards The Land of Hope and Dreams! May it be so. Let it begin with us. Today. “Signed, Sealed, Delivered”.
“We see what faith without fear can do”. “We know in the Spirit that positivity will win”. “Keep on tryin’ til we reach our higher ground”. (Stevie Wonder.) Yeah! Amen! Let it be so!
© Jane Tawel, 2026
Jane Tawel 