It’s been more than a week since the big election.  I had to wait for things to sink in and settle down before I could actually wrote about it all.  The absolute joy of election night was tempered by profound disappointment that California could actually pass Proposition 8.

I’ve never been more proud to be an American.  We have elected a new president who is smart, enthusiastic and visionary.  This is exactly what we need right now.  Barack Obama represents not only change, but optimism.  This is history in the making.  It’s a time when the United States has chosen consciously to move forward, embracing the future despite any challenges.

I’ve never been more disheartened to be a Californian.  California was the third state in the nation to make same-sex marriages legal.  And yet Proposition 8, which takes those civil rights away from people, managed to pass.  This is devastating, and so unlike our open-minded, open-hearted state.  I can only hope that the Supreme Court finds Prop. 8 to be unconstitutional.

The euphoria of the election has worn off.  It didn’t take long.  And now we see that we are faced with the same issues, they didn’t magically go away.  But we will get through these next few weeks by knowing that there is a light at the end of the tunnel – and it’s not an oncoming train!  We need to learn from the mistakes of the past.  We need to be present and aware of what is happening at the moment.  And we need to plan for, and look forward to, a more balanced and healthy global community.