Entry bubble The Swearing-In of our 44th President

By: Jake | January 21, 2009 | Category: General

President Barack ObamaMy colleague Jacqueline Snee went to the National Mall on Tuesday. I'll let her tell you the rest:

I am sure people at the swearing-in ceremony either took the day off or were given it off. Being a federal employee whose place of employment is located in D.C., it was nice to be the latter of the two. Since I am new to the area—2 ½ months here to be exact—and this was said to be one of the most exciting things to happen in American history, I thought it would be neat to experience. Was I prepared to watch it up close and personal with 1.8 million people? Not really!

It all started with the Metro ride. Getting on the train close to the start of the metro line gave me no indication of what was to come. Two stops closer to downtown I was pushed up against a window and realized that the amount of people attending this event was going to be astronomical. I got off at L’Enfant Plaza and to my astonishment we could barely get off of the train. People with signs chanting "Obama" got the crowd excited and the time seemed to pass quickly as we were herded out of the metro station and onto the street. Helpful volunteers with signs made sure the group was headed in the right direction. There were parked buses everywhere, barricades everywhere, and police everywhere with no moving cars in sight. Jumping over a couple barricades and walking what only seemed a couple blocks I was able to get through security swiftly and I ended up between the Washington Monument and the White House. There I was able to watch the festivities from the Gravitron.

At about the 4 hour mark, about an hour before the Swearing-In of our 44th President people were starting to waver. Everyone was trying to keep their feet and hands warm. I overheard a young teenager telling her parents she was completely frozen. A guy walked over to our group and asked us if we wanted an American flag. People gave him little notice. I said sure! It just took me to take the bait to get everyone else to want a flag! For a brief moment we had forgotten about our frozen fingers and stiff limbs and were waving our flags high in the air. You might say we were practicing.

The buildup of energy right before the president–elect accepted the presidency was undeniable. With the American flags reminding us why we were there, the people who had taken a seat on the lawn were now standing and trying to get a glimpse of the Gravitron. They too wanted to see history being made. We all had our flags poised. As I got my camera out I was glad that I was on the National Mall to witness such a diverse crowd welcome a man who brought hope to many people. The video I took captures what it was like.

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