We have always held to the hope, the belief, the conviction that there is a better life, a better world, beyond the horizon.”
– Franklin D. Roosevelt
The events of 06 January 2021 will forever more be etched into the history of our fair nation, the United States, as the day the President of the United States led an insurrection. To many, the flame on the candle of hope was blown out.
I submit the candle still burns.
The reality of the past four years was compressed into a single day. Our President and his delusion of interrupting the Electoral College vote to stay in power was just the newest low.
When his avalanche of specious legal cases failed to capture the election he lost, he lit the wick of insurrection and sedition with his admonishment to his faithful who had gathered to take back the election with violence. The President told them, “We’re going to walk down, and I’ll be there with you. You’ll never take back our country with weakness. You have to show strength, and you have to be strong.” We all know what transpired – our Capitol was overrun by a mob of angry supporters of a racist President.
But the candle of hope was not blown out.
Though it took until 0400 hours of 7 January to conclude, the Congress certified the election of Joe Biden as the 46th President. He will take office on 20 January 2021 and with his inauguration the healing of our nation may begin.
You see, when I awoke on 06 January, I awoke with a feeling of hope for our nation. I saw in my mind’s eye the Electoral College certification of votes within the Congress as the new beginning for our nation. I posted the following on Twitter that morning:
I know first hand the importance of our fair nation being the beacon of hope for the world. These past four years saw that flame waiver, and burn so shallow that it wasn’t visible to the world, let alone the people of our nation. There is no denying there is much work ahead, yet I submit:
- With hope, we have opportunity
- With opportunity we have change
- With change we have a future
The events of 06 January 2021 did not extinguish the candle of hope.
The candle of hope still shines.
It is now up to each of us to participate and share the work to rebuild our nation and once again have it be that bright beacon of hope for the world, and each other.
Thank you for your time,
Christopher Burgess
