As high school students, the only First Family we have been familiar with for the majority of our lives has been the Obamas. Barack Obama took office when we were in elementary school, and we have grown up with him and his family as figureheads of the nation. Now that Donald Trump is taking office as President of the United States, we wanted to reflect upon the role that the First Family has played in our lives.

Especially for seniors, Malia Obama has been an inspiration. She is the closest to them in age, and exudes grace and intelligence which we all admire. Her younger sister, Sasha, serves as a good example for us as well. Both daughters, although having grown up in the White House, have learned the same lessons that we have. They have learned how to obtain a job, excel in school and prepare for college. Despite their status as the First Children, Malia applied for various internships including one at an embassy in Madrid, while Sasha Obama worked at a restaurant a couple of doors down from the White House, just like the average American teenager. With their ages so close to our own, it is easy to see a bit of ourselves reflected in them.

We are the generation that has seen their growth from the two little girls in 2008 to the beautiful women they have become today. When Barack Obama became the first black president of the United States, the First Family stood by his side, and defied racial barriers along with him. As the first black First Children to reside in the White House, they still serve as an inspiration to all today.

Malia Obama plans to pursue filmmaking at Harvard University after a gap year, and Sasha Obama also has her own plans for when she graduates in three years. Young children around the world can perceive the sisters as a source of hope for everyone of all cultural backgrounds and ethnicities.

In a letter that the Bush sisters penned to Sasha and Malia, they expressed their congratulations on surviving the highs and lows of life in the White House, and offered some life advice for the sisters. The expression of familiarity between these sets of sisters clearly displays bipartisanship at its best. Such peaceful cooperation and communication through their example between the two parties is appreciated and serves as a template for what we desire future politics to reflect.

As the Obamas leave behind their legacy at the White House and we welcome the new First Family in, our hope is that they can carry the same sense of respect, mutual friendship and inspiration for the next generation which the Bush and Obama sisters have cultivated forward into the future, and help make America great again in the right way.