1.20.09 -- Surreal ecstasy at the Capitol Building

I didn't want to go.

The raucous sound of my alarm went off at 5:20 a.m. Sirens and cars were bustling on the street outside on this frigid Tuesday morning. I hate crowds. All I could think about were the annoyance of rude people engulfed around me in mass hysteria.

After forcing a meal of cereal and tea down in fear of not knowing when I would be able to refuel that day, I quickly got dressed, grabbed my camera and notepad and headed downstairs from my apartment with my roommate to meet the four other people in our group. We all stood in the lounge area, bundled up, our faces the only skin exposed, ready to endure the elements.

We had no formal route or itinerary; our goal was to get to the mall somewhere between the Washington Monument and the Capitol Building in front of a jumbo tron, somehow.

It probably took us an hour of weaving in and out of the city blocks, southwest, going almost all the way around the backside of the Capitol building. After an hour of following an endless crowd, we arrived towards the back of the Mall near the Washington monument. You could sense that this day was long overdue...

We made our way as comfortably close as you could, directly in the middle of the lawn. Small American flags stretched out of the crowd like blades of grass among beanie-covered heads sporting Obama paraphernalia. The attitude of change and renewal hung thick like an intoxicating smoke in the almost single digit degree Washington air. Though I was beginning to lose the feeling of my toes, fingers and face around 10 a.m., I was to preoccupied to be to concerned about the first stages of hypothermia that was being numbed by the anticipation and excitement of being able to not only witness but be a part of history, just two hours away.

As the caravan of delegates, officials, and senators arrived along with superstars like Beyonce and P. Diddy ( or is it Puff Daddy.....or just Diddy? well which ever name he goes by now) Obama soon appeared on the jumbo tron, content and lacking any severe facial expressions.

Minutes later, it was time.

Obama stood in front of Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr., right hand raised in the traditional manor of typical oath-swearing posture and took the oath as the 44Th president shortly after 12 p.m.

As soon as he finished the famous words of the oath from Article II Section I of the U.S. Constitution, the placid crowd, who had been patiently and attentively listening, savoring every word like a sip of a well-crafted pinot noir, the stillness of the sea of people was broken. People were cheering, screaming, jumping, hugging--any form or embrace and celebration were preformed. The end of an era and the beginning of a new one was born.

I kept rotating in a circle, watching the crowd of about 2 million people around me--I was excited, overjoyed, ecstatic. I wanted to cry, scream and laugh all at the same time. Now, ten hours later, I am still processing and can't even really grasp what just happened today. I'm still chewing at the neck bone but ready to for the feast that is being prepared for not only this nation but the world. Though it won't be filled with exotic dishes and savory morsels, we can definitely hope for it to be a better meal.