As I'm sure everyone might have heard, Friday was the day of Donald Trump's inauguration. It's safe to say there have been some mixed feelings about this, it might be even safer to say that there are a lot of people angry about it. Putting Trump aside though, many people are beginning to lose faith in our great country and to those people, I say to focus not on The Donald, but rather the person and the administration, that he is replacing:

Thanks Obama. I've heard and read quite possibly thousands of people say this followed by some crude comment about how the world is supposedly going to hell because of something he may or may not have been responsible for. In this case, I really mean it.

Regardless of what your opinion of his presidency is, or what party you support, I'm sure you'd find it reasonable to say that there was something romantic about Obama's presidency and the mere concept of it. Obama, an African-American in particular, being able to assume the presidency of a nation that once enslaved his people is the ultimate demonstration of the American Dream: the belief that no matter who you are, where you are from, what you believe in or your status in society, if you work hard, are willing to sacrifice and believe, you, and anybody else, can achieve your goals.

I've never been one to follow politics intensely outside of election-time. In fact, before Obama's campaign took off I could not have given less of a damn about politics or who was in charge (although if I did care, I probably still would've found this hilarious). Then I went to an Obama rally (I believe it was the one above, I admittedly can't remember the date). The general feeling of hope at that rally was unmistakeable, as was the belief in the room when he preached the need for change (the same thing that admittedly every president from the last few centuries has preached).

When he finally got elected, especially in light of the significance of said victory, it made plenty of people feel like this:
That's quite a difference from how some reacted on election night 2016.

Anyway, Obama gained the Presidency primarily by preaching change, and no matter your opinion on whether it should've happened, or the results, you can't deny that it happened, all the while he became seemingly the coolest president of all time.

I could go on and on about Obama, his respective accomplishments and their significance, especially given the context, yet for me, the best way to summarize the feeling of Obama's presidency is something my dad said on election night: "How cool is it that the last two presidents in our country are going to be a black man and a woman?" Ok, the latter part didn't happen, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't appreciate the former.

Thanks Obama. Thanks for being a role model to me. Thanks for being a symbol of hope in a time and a world where hope is drowned in fear and pessimism. Thanks for proving that anybody actually can be president. Thanks for inspiring millions in this country and throughout the world. Thanks for all the memes. Thanks for being one of, if not the best, public speakers of our generation. Thanks for making everyone feel like they're welcome here. Thanks for making us feel alright, that everything was going to be ok, in times of sorrow and tragedy. Thanks for inspiring us to do more, every day of our lives. And last, but not least, thanks for being you, putting up with all you put up with during your presidency, from the filibusters to the fake news to the birth certificate people, and coming out in one piece with approval ratings just as high as when you got here.

To everyone who reads this who voted for Trump, I wish him the best of luck, because it isn't in my, or my country's, best interest to wish him failure given his role in our day-to-day livelihood. While I certainly didn't vote for him, I hope he is successful and solves all the problems he says he will solve.

To all those who didn't, it may be tough, but if Obama taught us anything it's that no matter the moment, no matter the tragedy, and no matter the circumstances, just believe in your country. Hopefully, every little thing gonna be alright: