For me, however, the biggest
event of the day had already happened when the East Room Ceremony
started up. While the East Room ceremony was being prepared, the
four national award winners and the entities that nominated them
were taken to the Oval Office for the official award presentation by
President Bush and First Lady Bush. There were eight of us in
total. Stepping into the Oval Office, each of us was introduced to
the President and Mrs. Bush.
I have to tell you, I was blown away by two things upon entering the
office. First, the Oval Office sense of 'place' is unreal. The
President later shared a story of Russian President Putin entering
the room prepared to tackle the President in a tough negotiation and
upon entering the atheist muttered his first words to the President
and they were "Oh, my God." I concurred. I could feel the history
in my bones. I was admittedly concerned about meeting the man. I
think all of us have an inner hope that the most powerful man in our country is
worthy of the responsibility and authority that we bestow upon them
through our vote. I admit that part of me was afraid that I would
be let down by the moment - that the person and the place could not
meet the lofty expectations of my fantasy world. He and the First
Lady were asked about the impact of the Presidency on their marriage
and, with an arm casually wrapped around Laura, he said that he
thought the place may be hard on weak marriages but that it had the
ability to make strong marriages even stronger and that he was
blessed with a strong one.
When asked what the biggest challenge of the Presidency was, he
talked about the daily frustration of partisan politics. He said
that when he was elected he promised that he would do in DC what he
had done in Texas and that was build alliances and coalitions that
bridged party lines in order to move the nation forward. He had
quickly learned that there are those in the nation's capital that
would rather see the nation dismantled than work together to achieve
a common good. That, he said is a bitter and continuing
disappointment.
The President talked about the artwork and other items of interest
in the room. For instance the desk he uses is the one that was given
to the U.S. by Queen Victoria and used by FDR and JFK. In fact FDR
had a front panel added to the desk to cover the mid section because
FDR did not want the country to know he was in a wheelchair.
President Bush laughed and said, "My how things have changed, FDR
hid a wheelchair and if I eat a pretzel and get a tingle in my arm
it's front page ! news around the globe." That little desk faux
front is hinged by the way, and is the door that we all have seen
John-John sticking his head from behind in the famous photo of JFK
at work.
After about 30 or 35 minutes, it was time to go. By then we were
all relaxed and I felt as if I had just had an excellent visit with
a friend. The President and First Lady made one more pass down the
line of awardees, shaking hands and offering congratulations. When
the President shook my hand I said, "thank you Mr. President and God
bless you and your family."
He was already in motion to the next person in line, but he stopped
abruptly, turned fully back to me, gave me a piercing look, renewed
the vigor of his handshake and said, "Thank you - and God bless you
and yours as well."
I then did something that surprised even me. I said to him, "Mr.
President, I know you are a busy man and your time is precious. I
also know you to be a man of strong faith and have a favor to ask
you." As he shook my hand he looked me in the eye and said, "Just
name it."
I told him that my step-Mom was at that moment in a hospital in
Kalispell, Montana, having a tumor removed from her skull and it
would mean a great deal to me if he would consider adding her to his
prayers that day. He grabbed me by the arm and took me back toward
his desk as he said, "So that's it. I could tell that something is
weighing heavy on your heart today. I could see it in your eyes.
This explains it." From the top drawer of his desk he retrieved a
pen and a note card with his seal on it and asked, "How do you spell
her name?" He then jotted a note to her while discussing the
importance of family and the strength of prayer.
When he handed me the card, he asked about the surgery and the
prognosis. I told him we were hoping that it is not a recurrence of
an earlier cancer and that if it is they can get it all with this
surgery. He said, "If it's okay with you, we'll take care of the
prayer right now. Would you pray with me?" I told him yes and he
turned to the staff that remained in the office and hand motioned
the folks to step back or leave.
He said, "Bruce and I would like some private time for a prayer."
As they left he turned back to me and took my hands in his. I was
prepared to do a traditional prayer stance - standing with each
other with heads bowed. Instead, he reached for my head with his
right hand and pulling gently forward, he placed my head on his
shoulder. With his left arm on my mid back, he pulled me to him in a
prayerful embrace. He started to pray softly. I started to cry. He
continued his prayer for Loretta and for God's perfect will to be
done. I cried some more. My body shook a bit as I cried and he
just held tighter. He closed by asking God's blessing on Loretta
and the family during the coming months. I stepped away from our
embrace, wiped my eyes, swiped at the tears I'd left on his
shoulder, and looked into the eyes of our President. I thanked him
as best I could, and told him that me and my family would continue
praying for him and his.
As I write this account down and reflect upon what it means, I have
to tell you that all I really know is that his simple act left me
humbled and believing. I so hoped that the man I thought him to be
was the man that he is. I know that our nation needs a man such as
this in the Oval Office.
He's not what I had hoped he would be. He is, in fact, so very,
very much more.
