The topic of world conversation this past week, regardless of where you live, has been the upcoming inauguration of Barack Obama as the 44th President of the United States. I, like so many Americans, hope for change... change for the better, change for progress, and changes of peace and equanimity in this global world.

But since his win was announced, my thoughts have been mostly on the changes that will be coming for Barack and Michelle Obama’s family.

Many of the glimpses I have caught of the Obamas and their beautiful children on the campaign trail have spoken to me as a parent. Moments of shared affection, and of the girls looking just like any other youngster—excited, bored, over stimulated, or tired. All of these moments have reminded me that among so many of the changes coming for my country, often overlooked is the physical and emotional changes for this young family as they move into the White House.

It is said that a home absorbs characteristics of the souls that inhabit it, and is then forever changed. My country’s seat of government, the White House is also a home. How will that revered place change once possessed by the indomitable spirit of young children?

The New York Times published an article about what the Obama’s faced when they moved to Washington and began this next phase of their lives. The family discussed settling down, finding schools for the children, building a home filled with sleepovers and family dinners, as well as economic reforms and foreign policies. This is not a 9-to-5 job Barack Obama has signed up for, he does not leave his work at the office desk and head home to relax and forget a tough day. Obama will need strong foundations of support in both aspects of his presidential life—personal and professional. I hope Malia and Sasha Obama bring their new home some fresh perspectives, wide-eyed innocence, and boundless, joyous energy. All are wonderful qualities for every old soul within the White House to see, remember, and perhaps re-learn.

I was asked once why I allow my 4-year-old son to play hide and seek in the historic graveyard near our home in Sudbury, Massachusetts—the final resting place of so many who gave their lives for my country’s freedom. I replied that I did not find it disrespectful; I figured that maybe some of those old spirits missed hearing the sounds of a young child running and laughing with abandon, and a mom responding in loving kind. This is what I imagine the old timbers of the White House need; that quality of innate goodness that love, family, and children can bring, and then leave behind for the great house to retain forever.

I am hopeful for my country. I am encouraged to see Democrats and Republicans pledging to work together for the common good. I am proud that other nations of the world feel excited for America to move forward.

And as a parent, I am happy to see children in the presidential equation. Children that will be a respite for their parents’ weary days, and provide unconditional love for their exhausted nights. But mostly...children who will keep that presidential head on straight, for even within the White House hallowed walls, there is no experience more grounding or humbling then spending time with your kids.

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