Somewhere out there, the Frazier family strains to see there president take the oath of office on the Capitol steps. Again. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, Pool)
The Chicago Sun-Times is chronicling the journey to Monday's inauguration with the Frazier Family of Marquette Park, and blogging about it. Catch our first story in the series here.
Mckinley Wright, 14, for whom this is the first time seeing the nation's 44th president inaugurated, is mesmerized, glued to the ceremony, straining intermittently to see the dots in the distance of the Capitol steps where this is all happening, then the jumbotron, where it's all very near.
Creative, he finds that if he watches through the zoom of Pamela's camera, he can bring this historic event closer.
Asia Wright, 16, in her own world, has processing of this second inauguration she has attended for this president, apparent in her distant gaze. She walks away from her family to find a clear opening in the crowd. There, she watches, but even more importantly, tilts her head down and listens, to President Obama's "We are made for this moment" speech.
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Semaja Frazier, 12, is as enthusiastic as if this were her first Obama inauguration, straining upward to gaze steadily, and waving her souvenir flag and screaming at the appropriate pause and applause moments of Obama's speech.
Brian Jackson, 12, can't see above the crowds, which can be frustrating. He listens awhile, then focuses on taking photos of the sights around him, people's faces, his family, and himself, at his second Obama inauguration.
Pamela is speechless, riveted, but no tears like the matriarch shed as she watched Obama sworn in in 2009.
So many emotions were experienced on this inauguration day, in the words and faces of the Fraziers in response to the words spoken by the President as he accepted his second term, as well as to the vibe, the sights and sounds of the day. It's hard to immediately process.
With cold, hungry kids in tow, Pamela opts to skip the Presidential Parade, which would start in two hours, after 2 p.m. It's a major sacrifice, because if you leave, you likely won't make it back in. So many who were in line with the Fraziers earlier at the general admission gate on 7th Street were just making it in, dejected and disappointed.
But Pamela believes the grandkids, who have weathered a lot this morning, would prefer sustenance, warmth.
After subway sandwiches and a couple hours of sitting, we're warm, rejuvenated. We take our time strolling up along the Mall periphery, shopping the vendors and haggling with them over their so-called "Everything must go" prices. People are hanging out, enjoying the feeling of unity and a certain electricity in the air.
We meet our bus back at RFK Stadium at 5 p.m. sharp, three hours back to Harrisburg. Early night.
Tomorrow, it's a visit to the seat of power for this group, the U.S. Capitol, then we hit the road.
The Sun-Times followed the Frazier family on its first Road Trip to History on Jan. 20, 2009. Revisit the series here:
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