Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes

My friend James pointed me to President-elect Obama's transition web site. On there, you have an opportunity to share your story, your ideas, and your vision for America. This is what I submitted:

This campaign, for me, has been about Hope. Not little 'h' hope, but big 'H' Hope. The kind of Hope that we rarely see. The kind that motivates people to believe. President Obama made me believe that anything was possible. Now I look forward to helping make that change real.

I honestly think that the biggest issue facing our country, the one that could stop us from overcoming any of the others, is the hate and fear that we have been experiencing over the last eight years. President Bush claimed he was going to be a uniter, not a divider. But there was no true reaching across the aisle. He reached across to invite his opponents to come to his side, not to meet him in the middle.

We have become so polarized as a nation that the speaker of an idea has become more important than the idea itself. We need to heal those divisions and build trust if we are to end the war, protect the country, or restore the economy.

I don't have all the answers for how to do that. I'm just going to try to listen to people I know who have a different view and understand what their concerns and beliefs are. When I respond, it will be to address their concerns, not to express my fears. What is it that Covey says? "Seek first to understand, then be understood."

I look forward to the next four years and hopefully four more after that.