That sense of sacredness, that thinking in generations, must begin with reverence for this earth.

We are a continuum. Just as we reach back to our ancestors for our fundamental values, so we, as guardians of that legacy, must reach ahead to our children and their children. And we do so with a sense of sacredness in that reaching.

Thinking in generations also means enabling our young to have a decent standard of living.

Our destiny is greatness and we must return to its fulfillment.

In this era of the global village, the tide of democracy is running. And it will not cease, not in China, not in South Africa, not in any corner of this earth, where the simple idea of democracy and freedom has taken root.

Deep under our feet the Earth holds its molten breath, while the bones of countless generations watch us and wait.