On Monday, Jan. 21, our current president and future president crossed paths.  Sophomore Grant Kirkpatrick, who aspires to lead America in the future, traveled to Washington, D.C. with his friends and grandparents to attend President Obama’s inauguration.

“It was the biggest collection of people I have ever seen in my life,” Kirkpatrick said.  “Over one million people gathered to watch the President, which gave me the impression that he’s doing his job alright.”

Even though Kirkpatrick had to miss the first day of finals, the immensity of this privilege outweighed this downside.  Another perk, his special connections, secured him front row seats at the ceremony.

“I got front spots, right up near the stage,” Kirkpatrick said.  “I was about 200 yards from the president.”

This year’s inauguration included performances by many well-known celebrities, such as Beyonce and Kelly Clarkson who sang the national anthem and “My Country, ‘Tis of Thee,” respectively.  Despite these big acts, Kirkpatrick relished Obama’s oration the most.

“It was truly inspiring. You can watch Obama on TV, but when you’re actually there, it’s a whole different experience,” Kirkpatrick said.  “He’s much more charismatic and powerful in person, so I thought his speech was amazing.”

After a truly sensational experience like this, Lancer Link questioned Grant as to whether he would do it again.

“It was a bunch of fun. I got a whole lot of free stuff and saw the most powerful people in the world.  Nothing could compare to what I saw,” Kirkpatrick said.  “But, going again would depend on if he or she is a Democrat or a Republican.”

A participant in Speech and Debate, in addition to Academic League, Kirkpatrick possesses the drive, intelligence and charisma needed to succeed as the head of our country.  More realistically, he aims to become a senator, ambassador, mayor or anything involved with governing America.

“Seeing the amount of people all chanting Obama’s name motivated me even more to become president,” Kirkpatrick said.  “The fact that Obama was able to inspire 1 million people, not counting the viewers on TV, is amazing, and I want to do that some day.”

Anticipate to see this CHS sophomore’s name frequently in the news, most likely associated with politics of some sort.

“Just put in quotations, Kirkpatrick 2032,” Kirkpatrick said.  “Sophomore Eric Yu will be my Secretary of Defense.  Sophomore Barsegh Everekyan will be my Secretary of State.”