It's a new day

Stayed up till 2am to try and get a sense of which way the US Election would go. I don't know why it's generated such interest for me - I'm certainly not passionate about British politics. I suppose the closest political experience we have over here in the past few decades is the 1997 Labour win - change was definitely in the air then. Obama is different, somehow. I think it may be to do with his inherent calmness - something far more trustworthy than manifesto promises and glittering rhetoric (although he has those in abundance too). I have never really been attracted to the US, I'm quite happy being a cynical Brit, but last night/this morning I felt something of the excitement of being an American. If the only change this moment really offers is a renewed hope that unites a people, then, surely, this is a good thing? I don't doubt that things will be hard for him once he has been inaugurated, but a change is an opportunity, and those don't come along very often. Better that than no opportunity at all. I suppose now we all have to take stock a little, and readjust our expectations - despite the media rhetoric, he is no Superman or Messiah, but he is a man who inspires hope, and this is an exhiliarating thing. I hope he and his family can rest now before things really start to get tough!

These moments of history are a different experience of time. One experiences them in the knowledge that, although they are being lived through in that particular moment, they will continue to exist forever as a snapshot of emotion and relatedness. Everyone remembers where they were, what they were doing, when history occurred. It feels as though this justifies humanity, to some extent: for most of our lives, we live a routine, but just occasionally we step outside of it and celebrate what it means to be human. I can't imagine there will be many Americans going to work today, for example!! The funny thing is, looking back at my own lifetime, these moments of history seem to be mostly tragic, full of pain and anger. 9/11 is the obvious one, as is the death of Diana. I have lived through two Gulf Wars, and countless other conflicts. The London and Madrid bombings. The IRA bombings when I was a child. There has been no Coronation or great Royal wedding since I was born. No wars have been decisively won, there has been no real patriotic uniting of the people of my country. (The only real sense of unity we may have had was marred by the London bombings the very next day.) Hope is hard to find in the national and international context, so it has been down to indiviudals to find it for themselves and this, perhaps, compounds the problem; we lose our sense of connectedness, and become more inward focussing. Today has a sense of hope about it, and I will celebrate it for that alone, even if his tenure as President turns out to be a total disaster!

On a totally different note, I saw an advert earlier for a new BBC documentary about the Picture Book (children's literature that is memorably illustrated). It looks fascinating. Obviously, my recent return to Roald Dahl has equally been a return to the wonderful illustrations of Quentin Blake. His drawings have such wonderful energy about them. They look so simple, yet, like all great works of art, they are nigh on impossible to recreate! I read an article in the Times not long ago about Blake's current projects (from David Walliams's new children's story to advertising outside a commercial development in King's Cross). It's good to see he is still going strong. I look forward to seeing how this BBC documentary treats the use of pictures in children's books.