Yes We Can

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We held hands, hugged, the excitement was unbelievable. No one talked. Nieces and nephews tried to get our attention but were shushed. The moment arrived - The pledge read - President-Elect Barack H Obama was finally the President.

In the small TV room of our house in New Delhi, my husband and I were smiling, joyously.

And then the national anthem played and reality sunk in. Hey, that's not our national anthem. Barack Obama is not our President!

Such is the story of Barack Obama, the power of Barack Obama, that world over people are wistfully looking at their TV screens and wishing that he was theirs.

Son of an African migrant in the US and a White mother, Obama grew up in Hawaii and Indonesia before following through his American Dream, graduating from Harvard, becoming a lawyer who worked for the neighbourhood and then becoming a young Senator. His inauguration had his various half-brothers and sisters and the rest of the extended family from Kenya and Indonesia in attendance.

But Barack Obama's story is not just about his mixed parentage. Barack Obama's story is that of an articulate, intelligent 'young' man who when he speaks, has the world mesmerised. 'Yes we can', repeats the world. Barack Obama's story is of a man who humbly offers hope to a world that is desperately in need of it. At a time when terror is in our homes and in our hearts, terror not just of the physical kind but a genuine fear of losing the family and the life we've always dreamt of and have come so close to achieving, Barack Obama gives us a sense of security. He says, "Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking "the world." And we chant, "Yes we can".

Will he follow through with his promises? Are we putting just a little bit too much of a pressure on the guy? Will he walk the talk and fix everything? He's aware of the expectations - "Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious, and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America: They will be met." As an Indian living the Indian Dream, to me those lines are as much about me here in Delhi as it's about my American friends living in New York.

But the Barack Obama story is also not so much about him. It's also about a lack of leadership in our own countries. Or to put it rightly, a lack of leadership we can look up to, leadership that inspires hope and belief and most importantly trust. Leaders we are willing to work with to make things better. Leaders for whom we are willing to "set aside childish things."

But "They can't take away our hope" says Obama. And I, here in India, am hoping that things will indeed get better.. The story of Barack Obama will permeate into our political system and bring about a "Change We Can Believe In."