Hopeful Worldwide Moments

I've been thinking about the world of news lately, and about how exciting 2008 was for me. So often, the external world shares bad news. My first forays into daily newspaper reading were in the times of Chernobyl, the bombings of Libya, and the Challenger's fiasco. Now, over 20 years later, there have been so many other devastating events--some on a larger scale, some on a smaller scale. I have been pulled into stories of failed airplanes and failed nations. I have found myself following how the potential for a national surplus shed into a humongous national debt. I've followed the news about wars and disease. Please don't think I've enjoyed learning about these aspects of the world; au contraire, I've hated it! However, I want to be an informed human, and I believe that by knowing the world, we can better make changes in it.

So...why is this blog entry called "Hope"?

Looking back on the past, I can think of a few HUGE moments that gave me hope. The first biggie was the launch of the first Space Shuttle. I was in first grade, and it was my first time watching the news on TV. My dream was to be an astronaut. (Challenger ended that!...and if it hadn't, my own motion sickness would have!) Having a space ship that could come back to the earth and then take off again was thrilling. After that, happy news stories involved Mary Lou Retton's success in the Olympics, or the Mets' winning a World Series. Perestroika was hopeful in my dreams of a world peace, but shaded by my concern at the long bread lines and growing poverty. I dreamed of meeting a marrying a cartographer as the maps of Eastern Europe were being redrawn...but I wasn't sure if that was hopeful. I've been thrilled at much of the progress in medicine that I've followed online; I am still awaiting a definitive cure (vaccine?) for AIDS and cancer. Another hopeful moment for me was when smoking was banned from many public places. Also, I loved watching the rise of children's literature... especially the addition of a Children's Books Bestsellers list in the NY Times.

However, 2008 takes the cake.

I have never ever ever felt such hope on a national and global scale as I did with the series of events leading up to Barack Obama's election. I still feel a frisson of excitement (is that redundant?) when I remember the moment when I knew that the numbers would work out for changing him from the nominee to the President Elect.

I hope that he will be able to guide the world towards a safer, kinder place, and help restore our education system and create a health system that works for all.

I know that the world will put road blocks in his way.

I know that all the hopes of change will not be fulfilled and that change takes work and compromise.

I know that one person alone cannot make ALL that change.... and yet, his election was the result of many, many people. And one person can make an awful lot of change. I live my life hoping I can make the world better on a local scale. Here's hope that with a new regime this world will begin to repair itself.

So..............what are other hopeful moments in YOUR memories?