We have chosen hope over fear

For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the firefighter's courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent's willingness to nurture a child, that finally decides our fate.

Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends — hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism — these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility — a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation, and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.

I have been trying to pinpoint my favorite part of today and I can't I loved that our office shut down as we all gathered in the conference room to watch the ceremony projected up onto our wall. I loved seeing George HW Bush and Bill Clinton walking together through the Capital and the Obama girls walking out so poised and well-mannered. I loved The music, the ecstatic crowd, and the pure silence in the room I sat in as the 44th President spoke. And I loved the feeling that I felt today as I remained glued to the news, watching the same clips over and over.