Yesterday

Yesterday was such a cool day. We got up early and clicked on the television and saw the morning media. I had to go to work, but I brought a battery-powered radio so I could listen. As I cut and wrapped two cases of cabbage and soaked my lettuce and wrapped discounted produce, I listened as Biden and Obama got sworn in, I heard Aretha belt out "This Land Is Your Land," and I heard our new President gives his inspiring inauguration speech. As the day wore on, I left the radio on, and that's how I heard about my home-town state Senator Ted Kennedy having the seizure in the middle of the lunch. They say it was just from the frenzy of the day, but, ah, poor Teddy. At least he got to live through this historic moment.

Tuesday is always a slow, off-day at the store, and yesterday was no different. Hardly a soul entered the store between noon and one. Then, people started shuffling through, and one of my customers, a lovely woman of probably close to 70 years old, came in and shared her enthusiasm from Obama's speech. She told me she is inspired to finish her book that she's put on the back burner for a few years, a book about the effects of war on people. She went on to share with me that she and her husband grew up in Stockholm, her parents were German, and her (now deceased) husband fought in WWII, and when he was discharged because of injury, he received no compensation or recognition. They fought for years for this, and it wasn't until he was on his deathbed that he received anything. But by that time, they decided to only give him half of his back pay because he was going to be dead soon.

She has a PhD in linguistics and writing (I think it was), and had been a professor but never got tenured. She decided to leave her job to care for her ailing parents, and after they passed, she tried to get another teaching position but could not get hired because she was too old. She couldn't even get a high school teaching job because she was told she need more certification. Now she is borrowing off of her house to make improvements and has to rely on food stamps to pay for groceries.

Quite a story.

She did not tell me this for sympathy, however, only to share that because of yesterday's events, she has been inspired. I thought that was pretty damn cool.

As for me, I probably will continue on to be the "flying-under-the-radar" but try-to-be-a-good-person that I've always been, cheering everyone on and doing what I do best, which is cleaning up the messes and organizing the junk. It's just what I do, and I don't think there is anything wrong with that, personally. Sure, I'm not out there waging the battles, but I'll be here on the home front keeping things in the best order that I can.

When I got home from work, a dear friend of mine announced his cancer diagnosis. He is confident he will beat it. Another friend called to organize a fund raiser for that same person who is taking a trip for a music competition next month. He was unaware of the cancer, but now it seems even more important.

And all that is just in my little tiny corner of the universe. The big shift has begun.