The Day I Met Obama

When I woke up on the day I met Obama the sun was the same brightness as usual, maybe just a little dimmer as it fought through the rain clouds. The work that day was the same as usual, if not a bit tougher for this reason or that. The work finished at 530 – that’s a bit earlier than normal. But I had a meeting to get to.

I was a bit ahead of schedule as Obama was finishing up his earlier meeting. I decided to walk to the farther train stop, just to feel the drizzle come to a rest upon my parka for an extra ten minutes.

As I walked through the first major street the heavy traffic hardly registered. Accidents, rush hour, pedestrians, break-downs – these things happen all the time. My mind only became aware of anything more than drizzle when I noticed cars turning around to go the other way – only to wind up in an equally long and frozen line of cars. At this point Obama was in transit.

Upon reaching the next significant street I became acutely aware of the lack of motion in the world. Cars, ubiquitously fast cars, sat still like sleeping lions. Obama was moving fast though. The power of hundreds of horses pull, push and will him to 40 miles per hour, maybe more.

But I still had time. So I meandered towards the source of the still cars. And there were police, groups of people , barriers, bicyclists, cameras – all looking. Looking at nothing. On the busiest road near my house, known for its snarls of traffic there was a screaming silence of inactivity. Only open road and looking. Obama rushed forward.

Oh, but off in the distance it was hazy. It must have been a big fire. Or is it just the drizzle, my focus of so long ago? While I contemplated, Obama flew.

Before I had a chance to even get ready. That’s when the roar of engines, the screams of people and the awareness of velocity returned. That’s when I met Obama. Like the flash of a shooting star – and then back to reality. But the world is new.