"Living History"

After this semester, I won't host a radio show anymore.

I am having fun doing these weekly commentaries entitled "Living History."

Here's the one I'll likely deliver tonight:

Growing up without a father, those who I depended upon most were the women in my life. Those women included my mother, my twin sister, my maternal grandmother, my aunts, my cousins, my teachers, and my close female friends. Long ago when I dreamed of the white picket fence, the wife, and the children I dreamed of daughters who were like the women already in my life. I dreamed of daughters who were beautiful not just in appearance, but also in spirit. I dreamed of daughters who were intelligent and whose intellect matched that of anyone who dared question their ability to succeed. I dreamed of daughters who more than just dreamed, who believed in the power of God, the power of family, and the power of love. And with those things I hoped that their hopes and aspirations for themselves would be sustained.

I once wrote about an amazing woman, a female superhero. The story was an ode to the women in my life, and a commenter said, "Yes, women do, do it all." And that has stuck with me, as I have grown more and been nurtured by women whose competence I’ve never questioned, whose skills I’ve always been able to depend upon. So when I saw that this country would finally have a woman who finally had a seat at the table, who in our American government could wear red and not just black, I got excited. I thought to myself finally the world will get to see, what I have already seen. The power of a woman to not just nurture, but to lead, to not just speak but to act.

And no woman should have to carry the weight of the world on her shoulders, but they do. They do it not because they necessarily want to, but because there is still sexism just as there is racism. There are still fears about having someone different sharing power, and sharing responsibility. When Baltimore born and bred Representative Nancy Pelosi ascends to the office of House Speaker she will be the highest ranking elected female in American history. She will have broken the proverbial "glass ceiling", but who among her will follow? Will we finally see the value in making sure our communities are inclusive, and are representative in the truest sense of the word? That is my hope. Because as we live, with each passing second, each passing minute, each passing hour, we are "living history".