A quote from one of my favorite television shows, The West Wing: “We don't know what the next President's going to face. If we choose someone to inspire us then we'll be able to face what comes our way.”
You inspire me, Mr. President. Through your words, your actions, your family, and your Presidency, you inspire me.
As recently as 2007, I was a self-proclaimed conservative Republican. I lived in my mid-sized hometown in Indiana, where I had lived my whole life and gone to college, and had seen very little of the world around me. But then, in the summer of 2007, I moved to Nashville, Tennessee, began attending a very liberal Presbyterian church, and had my eyes opened by a Illinois Senator named Barack Obama.
Through your many campaign speeches, I learned that politicians do care, that they can do more than raise and lower taxes. I learned that we can always have hope, even when we have nothing else. And most importantly, I was inspired to do more, to hope for change, and to hope for hope itself. I am forever grateful for the hope you instilled within me.
Thank you for all you have done for not only me, but this country. We are a country that has a large load on our shoulders, yet we too often let that burden fall on our neighbors when we could easily help them. Through your inspiration, I feel a spark was ignited to help one another carry that load, through service work, charitable giving, and kind words. Thank you for that.
I pray for you, your family, and your Presidency. I pray that I will continually do my best to serve this country and the men and women who occupy it. And most importantly, I pray that we always have hope.
Thank you, many, many times over for inspiring me.
Truly appreciative,
Brian J. Moles
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This is not the letter I had in my head at all. In my mind, I had crafted the perfect letter, the letter that would get me an invite to The White House (yeah, those are the things I dream about), but this is the letter I wrote. I am not disappointed in the words I found to write at all. With time, I might have been able to find more profound words, but this project is making me realize that what matters most, both on my end and the recipients end, is the thought to send a letter and say thank you. Driving myself to say things I might not have ever said otherwise is thrilling and terrifying at the same time. I can only dream that President Obama reads my letter and is somehow grateful.
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