Living in New Zealand means that we watched the election results in the tearoom at work on Wednesday afternoon. One of my American colleagues put on an afternoon tea shout, and many gathered around to watch the election feed from CNN.
I fielded the inevitbale queries asking me who I thought would win (Obama). The mood reflected the polite interest one expects from any British-derived culture, where emotion is reserved for – well, nothing really. It’s all just reserved, except maybe for rugby or football (that would be “soccer” to you Americans).
Yet you could sense the undercurrent of support for Barack Obama.
As the immaculately presented figure of Wolf Blitzer – at least I think it was Wolf – guided us through the polling results, you could also feel the tension in the room. What if Obama didn’t win? What would that mean?
As the results rolled in and one state after another turned blue and it became clear that Obama would win and eventually did win, you could sense the mood in the room relax. Sort of like betting on the favorite at the races who you know will win but you don’t relax completely until it crosses the finish line first and hopefully by several lengths. Those of us in the room at that point conducted the usual post mortem – why Obama won, what he did right. Why McCain lost. What he did wrong. Nonetheless the tension was gone. A Japanese student who came later expressed genuine elation when told that Obama had won.
Then something strange happened. The discussion shifted from Obama’s win to apprehension for his saftey. Their concern arises from the perception that, as the first African American president, he carries a much higher risk for assassination than you might otherwise expect for a “typical” president. Unfortunately I could not completely disagree with them and hope that the Secret Service does their job well.
Quite a swing, from tension to relaxation to apprehension, all over afternoon tea. Such genuine interest and concern largely from a group of people who still swear fealty to a monarchy that we dumped a long time ago. Remarkable.
As for me, how do I feel about it? I cannot claim to have followed the campaign intimately. Honestly six to eight months ago I would have been hard pressed to spell the name of the President-Elect correctly. Eight years away definitely loosens the connection. But living overseas also gives you a global perspective (as does a Dutch spouse). If I had to describe the feeling in a single word, the word would be “clensed.” I have some sense of the slate being wiped clean. My feeling is that in the world’s eyes, America has redeemed itself. Maybe a little, maybe a lot. Or, maybe, much like a wayward sibling, America has grown up a bit and may finally be coming back to join the family.
Congratulatons President-Elect Obama! As they say here in New Zealand: good on ya!
Tags: Afternoon Tea, US Election