How I experienced the inauguration

By Alison Passell

I teach second grade. I tuned in NPR that morning for the students and played some preliminary speeches, the violin/clarinet/cello Simple Gifts/John Williams piece (I didn't know it wasn't live but that's OK), the swearing in (I'm still very irritated with the Chief Justice), and the wonderfully soaring speech given by our great President Barack Obama. As usual, it brought tears to my eyes. Every time he speaks, I am stirred as I've never been stirred by a public leader.

The students who were ready for it certainly learned about the meaning of the inaugural address. It would have made a much greater impression if we had gathered in the multi-purpose room to watch it on a big screen of some sort, though in our current ethos of austerity, perhaps it was best this way. They learned how a competent, brilliant leader sounds when delivering the speech of a lifetime.